My Tax Burden

Would you like to know why the US economy is about to take a nosedive yet again? It's because people will have less to spend. A *lot* less. Check out MyTaxBurden.org. Plug in fictitious numbers if you want. Then press the "Calculate" button and see how much more in taxes you're about to spend next … Continue reading My Tax Burden

Cripple America

My opinion: Obama and his team are in waaaaay over their collective heads. They believe the world is basically good, and because Obama is in control of the White House, the world will warm to them and we will all live together in harmony. Except that's not the world. Putin will outmaneuver the clueless Obama. … Continue reading Cripple America

Obama Urges Spending Curbs for Somebody, But Not Him

Associated Press headline, "Obama urges spending curbs, hands out $15 billion." After not quite a month in office, I've begun to change my opinion on the President. I thought at first he was a useful idiot, a tool of the powerful Democrat Spending Machine. I no longer think he's useful, and "idiot" may be too … Continue reading Obama Urges Spending Curbs for Somebody, But Not Him

Roadside Hero

There are still men in America. I live on North Street. You know how I get here everyday? I walk. Yep, that's five miles round-trip. But there's no sense in whining about that. What am I supposed to do; not go to work because I have too far to walk? I'm a man, and I … Continue reading Roadside Hero

Tea Party

And so the veil of deceit lifts. The news media, so eager to proclaim Obama as the messiah during the election cycle, now turns on him and begins to devour him. What changed? In one sense, nothing. Obama's promises of socialist changes are progressing. Universal health care, nationalization of manufacturers and banking, imposition of union … Continue reading Tea Party

Most Economists Agree – The Stimulus is a Bad Idea

From Obama's speech last night - Most economists almost unanimously recognize that, even if philosophically you’re — you’re wary of government intervening in the economy, when you have the kind of problem we have right now — what started on Wall Street, goes to Main Street, suddenly businesses can’t get credit, they start paring back … Continue reading Most Economists Agree – The Stimulus is a Bad Idea

Hope and Fear

Inauguration Day: "On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord." Today: "This recession might linger for years. Our economy will lose 5 million more jobs. Unemployment will approach double digits . Our nation will sink deeper into a crisis that, at some point, we … Continue reading Hope and Fear

"Stimulus" Bill Now Tops $900 Billion

Congress is sapping any possibility of US productivity for generations to come. Only a fraction of this so-called "stimulus" bill actually stimulates the economy. The vast majority of it is increased government oversight and additional government programs. By taking such a whopping amount from the American people, the US government is stifling productivity of the … Continue reading "Stimulus" Bill Now Tops $900 Billion

Presidential Actions, Week 1

I'm going to keep saying this so that I remember; "Obama is my President." It's important to remember we are called to be good citizens. But that doesn't mean we check our beliefs and feelings at the door and blindly follow our new Dear Leader. In one week - He reestablished federal funding for overseas … Continue reading Presidential Actions, Week 1

How to Gain the Christmas Spirit

The best way to give wings to the Christmas Spirit is to give gifts to people who need them. My wife and I exchanged few gifts this year, opting instead to give to charities instead. Instead of giving somebody a trinket they didn't need, we'd ask them what their favorite charity was. Then we'd give … Continue reading How to Gain the Christmas Spirit

Congress Gives Themselves a Raise

Because they gave away billions... no wait, over a trillion dollars of taxpayer's money... ... because in order to approve %750 billion of it, they had to add $150 billion in pork... ... because they pressured banks to lend money to people to buy houses they couldn't afford... ... because the same people like Barney … Continue reading Congress Gives Themselves a Raise

Christian Carnival CCLIV

I could call this the "Day After Trying to Recover From What Might Have Been a Minor Flu Edition," but I won't. Christmas Season and Flu Season accompany each other every year, like Hansel and Gretel, or Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dum. I had just enough aches and pains to baby myself to prevent a flu... heck, … Continue reading Christian Carnival CCLIV

What Did We Learn?

Obama beat McCain handily, 349 to 163 electoral votes. What we should have learned, I don't know that we did. What we should have learned is that we have principles and ideals and we should stick to them. Ronald Reagan knew it, and we gave him victories. The 1994 Republican House knew that, and we … Continue reading What Did We Learn?

Christian Carnival CCXLIV

Image via WikipediaIt's National Bailout Day, seeing as how our illustrious US Congress has allocated $700 billion for Wall Street bankers. As Christians, I think we probably could put $700 billion to better use, don't you? But I got to thinking that our lives are not ours, we have been purchased at a cost. How … Continue reading Christian Carnival CCXLIV

Christian Carnival CCXXVIII

This week, Chasing the Wind is honored to host the 228th edition of the Christian Carnival, a collection of this week's best Christian blogging. This week is Father's Day - so let us remember this week that it is our Father in heaven that gives us Life in Him! Would you like to participate in … Continue reading Christian Carnival CCXXVIII

Market Influences

Today's a good example of why I invest mechanically. I don't read news resports to see whether the market is going up or down, I just stay invested because over the long haul the market goes up. The daily fluctuations, no matter how hard I try to understand them, only make sense if you are … Continue reading Market Influences

Sneaky Texas Legislature and Taxes

So, if the state has collected too much money, maybe as high as $10 billion, do you think those sneaky dogs in Austin ought to - a) refund the money because citizens are complaining about property taxes, or b) tax businesses too! Yeehaw! If you answered (b), you can be a Texas legislator, too! Those … Continue reading Sneaky Texas Legislature and Taxes

Immigration Reform on Hold

I'm glad, the US Senate was rushing this through to give us a watered-down feel-good bill that would change nothing. What would the bill do to illegal aliens? - If they were here illegally, they would be in trouble. - Perhaps they would be given a misdemeanor. - Then they would be made US citizens. … Continue reading Immigration Reform on Hold

No Longer Giving Bush the Benefit of the Doubt

I have to admit that after nearly 5 years of being a Bush supporter, I'm having trouble recently continuing to support him. Until 9/11, I though Bush was mostly ineffectual, stymied by the Democrats whenever he tried to accomplish anything. Bush was still a far better choice than Al "Mr. Internet" Gore, though. 9/11 changed … Continue reading No Longer Giving Bush the Benefit of the Doubt

The Economy Today

Two news stories today make it clear how the economy is fairing today. First, the economy is in the doldrums. Consumers aren't spending, businesses are losing money, the world is coming to an end: NEW YORK (Reuters) - Discount retailer Dollar General Corp. on Wednesday posted an unexpected profit fall with customers hurt by high … Continue reading The Economy Today

Debate, Declaim, Debacle

From a tip from my brother-in-law Joe: CHIEFFER And our first question goes to Senator Kerry. Sir, your spending plans will cost over a trillion dollars. Your combined tax plans will cost $500 billion. How are you going to balance the budget? KERRY Bob, I'm glad you asked me that question, but before I dodge … Continue reading Debate, Declaim, Debacle

Relaxing Weekend, Back to Work

That was my first 3-day weekend since June. I'd almost forgotten how much I enjoyed my 3-day weekends every other week. Friday was a day of nothing; puttered around the house, read blogs, played some Ultima Online, and waited for Alex to show up so we could catch "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow." … Continue reading Relaxing Weekend, Back to Work

Lower Taxes. Higher Revenues. Better Economy.

NEW YORK - In the headlines this afternoon, the Congressional Budget Office will project that this year's U.S. budget deficit will be smaller than expected. The nonpartisan CBO is expected to say that the deficit will reach $422 billion. While that is a record, it is down from the $477 billion estimated for the year … Continue reading Lower Taxes. Higher Revenues. Better Economy.

Limited Government

I'm waiting for the major media to catch up on the Swift Boat Veteran stories. It's all over the conservative blogs, and just now starting to reach the liberal blogs. The left needed some time to catch up, and they're researching the background of the swift boat veterans. That's a good thing, by the way … Continue reading Limited Government

Kerry Admits Bush's Economy is Robust

It was only a matter of time - John Kerry spent months criticizing the economy and blaming it on Bush, but all the signs showed that the economy had turned around and was starting to accelerate rapidly. At the convention last week, Kerry barely mentioned the economy. How is Kerry supposed to complain about the … Continue reading Kerry Admits Bush's Economy is Robust

Higher Paying Jobs

I had a conversation with a good neighbor and friend tonight, and one of the topics was job growth. Here in Houston, the job market has been terrible, and it's apparent some jobs in some industries are not coming back. But I think this is looking at the economy through a pinhole - the US … Continue reading Higher Paying Jobs

Why on Earth…

Found via The Irish Lass who was kind enough to leave a poem for me earlier this week is this article in the NY Sun of a woman's attempt to be a Bush supporter among the leftist hate. She has the ultimate answer, though: If someone dares to confront me, I’ll give them the following … Continue reading Why on Earth…

John Kerry Flips on U.N. Position?

In April, John Kerry said: That is why, for the long term, our third step we must remove the “Made in America” label from the Iraqi occupation. We can do that by creating an international mission authorized by the United Nations. That mission should become the main civilian partner in helping the Iraqi people hold … Continue reading John Kerry Flips on U.N. Position?

Selected Quotes

Selected quotes from today's "The Federalist": Too many in the media act as if decency is a violation of the First Amendment." --Thomas Sowell"If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it's free." --P.J. O'Rourke "The courage of our military has brought us to this hopeful day … Continue reading Selected Quotes

My Lunchtime Leisure Reading for Today

Right Wing News gives us a sample of Michael Moore quote to help us know him and love him:"If someone did this [9/11] to get back at Bush, then they did so by killing thousands of people who DID NOT VOTE for him! Boston, New York, D.C., and the planes' destination of California -- these … Continue reading My Lunchtime Leisure Reading for Today

Democrat Suicide Watch

Found this at "Blogs for Bush", but actually penned at "The Common Virtue". Imagine, for a moment if you will, that you are a liberal Democrat. Then imagine what it must have been like for them to wake up this morning and find every reason for their arguments against President Bush absolutely obliterated. The article … Continue reading Democrat Suicide Watch

More Jobs, More Jobs, More Jobs

From the Associated Press - WASHINGTON - U.S. employers hired almost a quarter-million new workers in May, swelling payrolls by nearly 1.2 million for the year so far in a jobs market steadily gaining steam ahead of November's presidential election. Hmm... 1.2 million, divided by 5 months so far this year... 240,000 jobs per month … Continue reading More Jobs, More Jobs, More Jobs

Vast Right Wing Conspiracy Cover is Blown!

Rather than post stream-of-consciousness back-to-back-to-back articles, here's my last minute thoughts before I turn in. Fox News has a poll out, their summary says The latest Fox News poll finds that while President Bush's job rating remains below 50 percent and pessimism about the nation's economy grows, the election matchup shows little movement. In addition, … Continue reading Vast Right Wing Conspiracy Cover is Blown!