Obama and the Plumber.

No idea who the true author of this is. Came to me via email with no citation. But I had to "hurry up and post it so I could find out what's in it." (Sound familiar?)

The Plumber at the Obama's House

                                                              

Only weeks after leaving office on January 20, 2017, former President Barack Obama discovers a leak under his sink, so he calls Troy the Plumber to come out and fix it.   

Troy drives to President Obama's new house, which is located in a very exclusive, gated community near Chicago where all the residents have a net income of way more than $250,000 per year.

Troy arrives and takes his tools into the house.  He is led to the guest bathroom that contains the leaky pipe under the sink.  Troy assesses the problem and tells President Obama that it's an easy repair that will take less than 10 minutes.  President Obama asks Troy how much it will cost.  Troy checks his rate chart and says, "$9,500."

"What?!  $9,500?!" Obama asks, stunned, "But you said it's an easy repair.  Michelle will whip me if I pay a plumber that much!"

Troy says, "Yes, but what I do is charge those who make more than $250,000 per year a much higher amount so I can fix the plumbing of poorer people for free.  This has always been my philosophy.  As a matter of fact, I lobbied the Democrat Congress, who passed this philosophy into law. Now all plumbers must do business this way.  It's known as the 'Affordable Plumbing Act of 2014'.  I'm surprised you haven't heard of it."

In spite of that, Obama tells Troy there's no way he's paying that much for a small plumbing repair, so Troy leaves.  Obama spends the next hour flipping through the phone book calling for another plumber, but he finds that all other plumbing businesses in the area have gone out of business. Not wanting to pay Troy 's price, Obama does nothing and the leak goes un-repaired for several more days.  A week later the leak is so bad President Obama has had to put a bucket under the sink. Michelle is not happy as she has Oprah and guests arriving the next morning.  The bucket fills up quickly and has to be emptied every hour, and there's a risk the room will flood, so Obama calls Troy and pleads with him to return.

Troy goes back to President Obama's house, looks at the leaky pipe, checks his new rate chart and says, "Let's see, this will now cost you $21,000."

President Obama quickly fires back, "What? A few days ago you told me it would cost $9,500!"

Troy explains, "Well, because of the 'Affordable Plumbing Act,' a lot of wealthier people are learning how to maintain and take care of their own plumbing, so there are fewer payers in the plumbing exchanges.  As a result, the price I have to charge wealthy people like you keeps rising. Not only that, but for some reason the demand for plumbing work by those who get it for free has skyrocketed!  There's a long waiting list of those who need repairs, but the amount we get doesn't cover our costs, especially paperwork and record-keeping. This unfortunately has put a lot of my fellow plumbers out of business, they're not being replaced, and nobody is going into the plumbing business because they know they can't make any money at it.  I'm hurting too, all thanks to greedy rich people like you who won't pay their 'fair share'.  On the other hand, why didn't you buy plumbing insurance last December?  If you had bought plumbing insurance available under the 'Affordable Plumbing Act,' all this would have been covered by your policy."

"You mean I wouldn't have to pay anything to have you fix my plumbing problem?" asks Obama.

"Well, not exactly," replies Troy . "You would have had to buy the insurance before the deadline, which has passed now. And, because you're rich, you would have had to pay $34,000 in premiums, which would have given you a 'silver' plan, and then, since this would have been your first repair, you would have to pay up to the $21,000 deductible, and anything over that would have a $7,500 co-pay, and then there's the mandatory maintenance program, which is covered up to 17.5%, so there are some costs involved.  Nothing is for free."

"WHAT?!" exclaims Obama.  "Why so much for a puny sink leak?!"

With a bland look, Troy replies, "Well, paperwork, mostly, like I said.  And the internal cost of the program itself.  You don't think a program of this complexity and scope can run itself, do you?  Besides, there are millions of folks with lower incomes than you, even many in the 'middle class', who qualify for subsidies that people like you must support.  That's why they call it the 'Affordable Plumbing Act'!  Only people who don't make much money can afford it.  If you want affordable plumbing, you'll have to give away most of what you have accumulated and cut your and Michelle's income by about 90%.  Then you can qualify to GETyour 'Fair Share' instead of GIVING it."

"But who would pass a crazy act like the 'Affordable Plumbing Act'?!" exclaims the exasperated Obama.

After a sigh, Troy replies, "Congress... because they didn't read it."

      

This will help you better understand Obamacare....

How chaotic would this be?

There’s a “rumor”* going round that a recent survey of Muslims* revealed that a majority of them surveyed (51%) believed that “Muslims in America should have the choice of being governed according to Shariah (Muslim) Law.” 

Let’s set aside for the moment that life under Sharia Law is anything but productive and peaceful. Set aside for the moment that an examination of the lands controlled by the Islamic State show a history of freedom and basic human rights being the first things to disappear where the rule of law is Shariah and the reigns of government of said countries is handed over to Islamic clerics.

All that aside, let’s focus instead on just how ridiculously impractical and chaotic it would be to replace the rule of law with a menu of choices as to which set of juris prudence each and every heartbeat on our soil could choose to live under and be governed by.

But, wait; the clueless will say; all we’re talking about is having two choices – American Law or Shariah Law.

Really? Only two?

Let’s look at the ramifications of the recent approval by the US Supreme Court of gay marriage as an acceptable and equal rights alternative to heterosexual marriage in the law of the land. Thanks to their open-ended redefinition of marriage (intentional?), we’ve now got polygamists and pedophiles applying for the same equal marriage and relationship rights as homosexuals and lesbians now get under the law. These petitions made well-inside 30 days from the ruling permitting gay marriage.

So, let’s assume for the moment that these Nine Putzs on the Potomac also endorse this hair-brained idea that Shariah Law should be given equal access to anyone who wants it as American Law. Then it doesn’t seem to hard to imagine that there will be those immediately petitioning the Court for applicability of equal opportunity to be governed by some other preferred legal code – the ancient Native American Law the Code of Hammurabi** , Traditional Chinese Law, or that of the United Federation of Planets.

And can you imagine the difficulty this would cause law enforcement at the scene of a crime? What exact legal code do you prefer Mr./Ms. Suspect? Is the act you just committed a crime under that set of laws?

Fortunately, the overwhelming majority of Americans feel – 86% according to that same rumored survey - that Shariah Law should not replace the U.S. Constitution in any way.

But that doesn’t mean if this situation comes before the US Supreme Court it will do the right thing, the Constitutionally-legal thing or even the common sense thing.

  

*I’ll use that term here because I couldn’t outright find the exact poll to cite that this information allegedly came from.

**Babylonian law code of ancient Mesopotamia, dating back to about 1754 BC.

Independence Day 2015; "Things that make ya say, 'Hmmmmm....'"

To help celebrate Independence Day, I pulled up a copy of the Declaration of Independence last night and read it.

Besides being reminded of the brilliance of its author – Thomas Jefferson – several things stood out. The signers believed King George III of England to be guilty of:

·       “…a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny…”,

·       “…has made Judges dependent on his Will alone...”,

·       “…erected a multitude of New Offices…”,

·       “…subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws…”,

·       “imposing Taxes on us without our Consent…”,

And ultimately, someone “whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.”

Well! The things that make ya say “Hmmmmmmm….”

Let’s look at our current situation 239 years downstream of that great document that birthed our nation:

·       “…imposing Taxes on us without our Consent….” I wonder what the Signers would think of things like Obamacare and the trillion dollar Porkulus Package of 2009?

·       “…erected a multitude of New Offices…” I wonder what the Signers would think of Obama’s appointment of dozens and dozens of unchecked czars?

·       “…has made Judges dependent on his Will alone...” – I wonder what the Signers would think of our puppet court system where activist judges in the appellate courts (the 9^th circuit particularly) and the Supreme Court which despite the will of multiple state legislatures and the vote of the majority of the citizenry in multiple states have overturned the will of the people in favor of the liberal agenda – gay marriage, illegal immigration and, again, Obamacare – twice.

·       “…a history of repeated injuries and usurpations …” I wonder what the Signers would think of Obama’s record number of Executive Orders, especially when the Congress won’t give him his way? (see his 2014 “I’ve got a pen” statement and http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/executive-orders/obama-subjects.html for a list of them all)

·       “…subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws…” – I wonder what the Signers would think of how our current Chief Executive shows such disrespect and disregard for our Constitution and Bill of Rights?

As I say, the things that make ya say “Hmmmmmmm….” I can’t help but wonder what the signers of the Declaration of Independence would have to say about our current political situation? I can’t help but think they would be anything but disgusted at how their new nation has turned out.

Here we go again; PC running amok. This time it's a flag's fault.

Well, the Revisionist History Crowd is at it again. This time it’s trying to not only redefine what something stood for but also trying to obliterate it from our country’s culture. Yep, you guessed it; I’m talking about the recent outcry to remove the “Confederate flag” from public properties.

Just so we’re clear; let’s start with the basics. The official flags of the Confederacy – as in the Confederate States of America (CSA) - looked like this:

“The First Official Flag of the Confederacy. Although less well known than the "Confederate Battle Flags",the Stars and Bars was used as the official flag of the Confederacy from March 1861 to May of 1863. The pattern and colors of this flag did not distinguish it sharply fom the Stars and Stripes of the Union. Consequently, considerable confusion was caused on the battlefield.”*

So, they changed it to look like this:

 “The second Official Flag of the Confederacy. On May 1st,1863, a second design was adopted, placing the Battle Flag (also known as the "Southern Cross") as the canton on a white field. This flag was easily mistaken for a white flag of surrender especially when the air was calm and the flag hung limply.”*

So, they changed it to look like this:

“The third Official Flag of the Confederacy. On March 4th,1865, a short time before the collapse of the Confederacy, a third pattern was adapted; a broad bar of red was placed on the fly end of the white field.”*

What is being vilified every way from Sunday today as “the Confederate flag” is this:

 

"Virginia Battle Flag or Confederate Navy Jack: The Confederate Battle Flag. The best-known Confederate flag, however, was the Battle Flag, the familiar "Southern Cross". It was carried by Confederate troops in the field which were the vast majority of forces under the confederacy. Used [also] as a navy jack at sea from 1863 onward. This flag has become the generally recognized symbol of the South."*

“Note: It is necessary to disclaim any connection of these flags to neo-nazis, red-necks, skin-heads and the like. These groups have adopted this flag and desecrated it by their acts. They have no right to use this flag - it is a flag of honor, designed by the confederacy as a banner representing state's rights and still revered by the South. In fact, under attack, it still flies over the South Carolina capitol building. The South denies [– and has repeatedly denied -] any relation to these hate groups and denies them the right to use the flags of the confederacy for any purpose. The crimes committed by these groups under the stolen banner of the [confederacy] only exacerbate the lies which link the seccesion to slavery interests when, from a Southerner's view, the cause was state's rights.”** [Emphasis added.]

Additionally, over the years – until the decades wherein Political Correctness infected the thinking of this great United States - this battle flag has been flown by many an adolescent or twenty-something from a camping tent or in an apartment window or on the wall of a garage or apartment to symbolize not states rights, slavery, secession or anything but merely a symbol of a rebelliousness youth thumbing their noses at the rules and expectations of more settled adult society. Hell, I’d wager 90% of these kids didn’t even know there was/is a difference between the official government CSA flags and the Virginia Battle Flag.  

And that goes for these dimwit liberal revisionist history types who have likewise hijacked this battle flag to stand for subtle, institutionalized racism and/or insist that wherever it flies it inspires the imbalanced to racial violence. To these preposterous notions I say “Bunk!” The “confederate flag” – whether it’s a variation of the official CSA flag or the Battle flag – is just a piece of cloth and as such, hasn’t and cannot  hurt anyone in and of itself – unless twisted into a rope to hit someone with or a case of them were dropped on someone’s head. And it stands for more than the South of the Civil War. Rather it stands for the Southern culture – genteel manners, pride (in heritage, of being from the South), cuisine, religion, tradition, just to name a few of the good things in the South both of old and today.

So, if the state flags of Alabama, South Carolina or any other Southern state incorporate some variation of a “Confederate” flag, maybe the revisionist historians, the opportunist race baiters and the other hysteria mongers should think on the idea that it is that larger portion of the good that is Southern culture that is being represented in those flags and not some ridiculous idea that the South is gonna rise agin’ and recast blacks into bondage.

And maybe when they see a young kid with a “Confederate Star and Bar” on a t-shirt or a hat or hanging from a bachelor pad wall, maybe they should realize that it was just some 1% fringe element unstable youth that wrapped himself in that flag claiming some kind of divine mission to go out and slaugher a bunch of innocent black churchgoers and focus instead on the 99% of the rest of the youth for whom that “Star and Bar” symbolizes rebellion and mild non-comformity of youth.

But, that’s probably asking far too much from today’s dumbed-down-but-politically-correct American culture.

* Streufert, D. (unk). The Flag of the United States, Confederate Stars and Bars.  Retrieved 2 July, 2015 from http://www.usflag.org/confederate.stars.and.bars.htm

**Note contributed by BJ Meksikatsi. http://www.usflag.org/confederate.stars.and.bars.htm