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Iowa Gold Standard of America

Posted by Mike on Tuesday, January 03, 2012 4:22:22 PM
http://www.westernperspective.blogspot.com/
Iowa is the only normal state left in America surviving the dislocations of WWII. 

The Old South, heir to a High Anglican culture, has become petty and worldly.  The Eastern Seaboard has become the glitzy haven of wealthy capitalists like Trump and Bloomberg, reducing our founding principles to a lottery in which participants give up liberty and happiness for what?  The Midwest outside of Iowa largely has become dominated by Big Labor, corrupt city governments and football.  The Southwest including California is now run by unqualified, incompetent Affirmative Action babies including lots of women.  The Northwest has become the refuge of high tech tycoons.

A first place finish by Ron Paul in Iowa will have profound implications for America.  It will mean a rejection of the media-driven false, materialistic values now being sold to America as the norm.  It will mean that real Americans, preserving the true American founding spirit, reject war as an instrument of US foreign policy and want our troops to come home from foreign outposts where they are not appreciated anyway.  It means that real Americans are ready to throw neo-conservatism under the bus.

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Let Iran Close Straits

Posted by Mike on Monday, January 02, 2012 12:56:46 PM
http://www.westernperspective.blogspot.com/
The Islamic nations by and large oppose Westernization.  This has led Iran to risk war by threatening to close off the Straits of Hormuz, cutting off the shipping lanes within Iranian territorial waters to international traffic.

This should be a wake-up call to Washington blockheads to get off the dime and approve the Keystone pipeline, start drilling in the Alaskan wilderness area, and do everything possible to replace American dependence on foreign oil with domestic oil production.

Building electric cars and developing clean, alternative energy sources are necessary goals for the future.  In the meantime, let's obtain, refine and use as much American coal and oil as possible, and natural gas as well.  Use the primaries and 2012 elections to weed out all of the obstructionists who are keeping America dependent upon foreign sources of energy.

Do we not also have the right to close off the Gulf of Mexico to foreign shipping?

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The Future of Palestine

Posted by Mike on Sunday, January 01, 2012 2:06:54 PM
http://www.westernperspective.blogspot.com/
Palestine was the Greek designation for the land of the Sea People who invaded and settled the southern coast of Canaan circa 1175 BC, mixing with the local population and adopting Canaanite language, customs and religion.  This today constitutes the Gaza Strip.  The Romans used the term in creating the Province of Palestine including Judah and Israel, perhaps in a derogatory sense as they despised the Sea People as an inferior breed. Arabic-speaking Canaanites also live along the West Bank of the Jordan River, and also make up the Lebanese population, which had been under Syrian rule prior to the defeat of the Ottoman Empire.

With the Islamic occupation, the Palestinian Canaanite population was incorporated into Arab culture and spoke Arabic as in Lebanon.  Many adopted the Islamic religion while others held to their Christian faith.

After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the British mandate allowed Jews to return to Palestine, leading eventually to the creation of the state of Israel.  However, the Arab-speaking Canaanite population pre-exists and is separate from the Jewish state.  Lebanon did not exist as a separate state until it was recognized by the UN.  The world now must recognize that Palestinian statehood is a legitimate goal.
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The Tribulation

Posted by Mike on Saturday, December 31, 2011 11:23:07 AM
http://www.westernperspective.blogspot.com/
Even if Ron Paul were to come in second behind Mitt Romney in Iowa, the Gingrich campaign may be unable to recover from its deadly wound.  A win by Obama against a third party campaign mounted by Paul in November will usher in the Tribulation during which Antichrist will reign three and a half years, or until the beginning of the 2006 campaign season.  This will be a period of worldwide Divine chastisement to correct man's own outrageous folly.

At the end of this tribulation period, the Archangel Michael will defeat Satan and Antichrist using a leaner, meaner opposition party led by Paul to defeat Obama, as the discredited Republican Party will no longer be a serious contender in presidential politics.

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Gradualism and Gravitas Keys to Victory in 2012

Posted by Mike on Wednesday, December 28, 2011 12:23:49 PM
http://www.westernperspective.com/
Overlooking his pecadillos dredged up from decades old newsletters, Ron Paul presents a formidable challenge against Establishment political beliefs. Among the three leading Republican candidates, Paul is paleo-conservative, Gingrich is neo-conservative, and Romney is, well, just plain conservative.

Why is it that the "anybody-but-Romney" Republicans in the media are not now enthusiastically backing Paul? They would have backed a potential rapist, serial sexual harasser and alleged adulterer rather than support Mitt Romney whom they wrongly perceive as being too liberal. Or is it simply old-fashioned religious bigotry?

It is really a question of priorities. Paul's alleged anti-semitism and racism could actually gain him some fringe votes against Obama, and are not nearly as bad as Obama's subsidization of abortion as part of Obamacare. Youthful idiocy is excusable. If American voters were properly educated, Paul would win and Obama would lose.

The same holds true for Romney. Like Ronald Reagan, Romney has shown a consistent trajectory in the right direction, away from abortion rights and big government toward rational, limited government. More importantly, abortion can be put to a halt through gradual acceptance of the value of life. Romney could help bring those not fully committed on-board.
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What Do Paulistas Really Want?

Posted by Mike on Tuesday, December 27, 2011 2:50:44 AM
http://www.westernperspective.blogspot.com/
Ron Paul has become the unofficial godfather of the Tea Party. Can the Paulistas move beyond Libertarian naïveté to capture the Republican nomination, as Reagan did in 1980?

Many of Paul's proposals (not Paul the apostle) resonate with conservatives, including smaller government, spending cuts with tax reduction, reducing military presence abroad, outlawing government sponsored torture, etc.. Paul is pro-life, yet fifty years ago libertarians were on the front lines ushering in abortion and contraception for minors. Paul favors abolishing the Federal Reserve and returning to gold and silver as currency standards. However a free currency such as scrip (not "fiat money") used for transactions within local communities would work much better than hard money, but would require living the Gospel message turning away from pride and avarice. Likewise, legalization of hard drugs may be cost effective, but would not be good because it would deny habitual drug users recognition as persons to whom society owes a chance at redemption through government intervention, as noted by Chesterton with regard to the British justice system.

The Christian worldview will ultimately prevail as the truth always prevails. Can the Paulistas move beyond a simplistic approach to provide a realistic alternative to Obama?

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Is an Attack against Iran Imminent?

Posted by Mike on Monday, December 26, 2011 1:50:15 PM
http://www.westernperspective.blogspot.com/
A former senior foreign policy adviser to Barack Obama is now reportedly pressing for an American pre-emptive strike against Iran to defuse any possibility of Iran possessing a nuclear device, and for Americans to absorb the inevitable retaliation.  Obama has shown a willingness to initiate military strikes in the attack against Gaddafi in Libya and the assassination of bin Laden in Pakistan.  Is he foolhardy enough to launch a full scale war against a country which has not attacked us simply to protect Israeli interests which he despises?  What could possibly be the motivation for such an attack?

Could American disenchantment with Washington-Israeli corruption actually lead to Ron Paul winning the Republican nomination, and with a former Navy Seal as his running mate, defeating Obama next year?  We can expect Paul to deal fairly with Iran.  Gingrich would likely lead us into war.  Romney's response toward Iran would be questionable.
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Rediscovering America's Roots

Posted by Mike on Tuesday, December 20, 2011 4:56:23 PM
http://www.westernperspective.blogspot.com/
Social stratification in America largely depends upon ancestry, ethnicity and arrival date. My own family origins are traceable conjecturally from my paternal grandmother from a Bartelme family to the maître d'hôtel for Charles VIII of France, only because his name Péron is a form of Peter which matches Pétrange, the family château in Boulay, France, drawing a connection with ancestors in Provence going back to Italy. Péron's younger brother Thadée was ancestor of a Huguenot family of Vignolles, whose descendants later were to include a Continental Army officer Lewis Nicola whom George Washington had to reprimand for suggesting that Washington become king. The Bartelme family could also be related to a pre-Revolutionary Pennsylvania family of the same name going back to the same location in Lorraine. My grandmother's father John Bartelme was a successful cattle dealer in the area of Green Bay, Wisconsin. His cousin Mary became the first woman judge in Chicago, an early Progressive known for her volunteer work rehabilitating wayward girls, for whom Bartelme Park in Chicago with modernist design was dedicated. Her nephew Phillip became athletic director at the University of Michigan and allowed Branch Rickey to play baseball for Michigan even though he was a law student at the time. He and Rickey later went on to manage professional baseball being instrumental in allowing Blacks including Jackie Robinson to play Major League baseball.

My father's cousin Joe Bartelme became VP for network news at NBC. His sister Betty was an author and publishing editor for Macmillan.

To be continued...
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Transitioning to a Peacetime Economy

Posted by Mike on Thursday, December 15, 2011 2:42:09 PM
http://www.westernperspective.blogspot.com/
With bugaboos Saddam and Osama out of the way, Islam no longer poses a major threat to US national security.  Republicans should now be looking for a presidential candidate defending peace through strength and building up the economy, rather than using war to take away civil liberties and control people here at home by creating economic chaos.

Two names that come to mind in this regard are Santorum and Paul.  Paul now stands a good chance of winning the Iowa caucuses.  If he is successful, this will make it a three way race going into Super Tuesday, as I earlier predicted would happen, assuming a win by Romney in New Hampshire and by Gingrich in South Carolina.  I personally favor Santorum at this point in time.

Looking down the road, Paul could be given a second bite at the apple as a third party candidate even if Gingrich or Romney win on the Republican side.  A Paul / Ventura peace party ticket could conceivably take the White House in November.

The fundamental misconception so far is that war is necessary.  In fact, war is an unnatural scourge consequent upon disregard of Divine law.  Defense is an entirely different thing than starting wars against imaginary enemies.  This retribution inevitably falls on all involved in the conflict.  To stop wars, and prevent future wars, stop abortion and show respect for God's gift of life.  Prosperity and peace are not things that man creates himself by pursuing his own desires, but byproducts of living in accordance with God's plan which is to bring about human happiness.
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Captain Serenity

Posted by Mike on Wednesday, December 14, 2011 11:47:42 AM
http://www.westernperspective.blogspot.com/
Back at the old Valley Club in Northridge, on the outskirts of LA County, where profanity, fights and shouting matches not uncommonly broke out even though against the rules, one of the most respected characters used to identify himself at AA meetings with, "I'm Captain Serenity and I am an alcoholic", to which the group response would be a resounding "Hi Tom".  You see, at the Valley Club, no one was ever allowed to speak at meetings without first identifying, and Tom had a very big ego.  He was the adoptive son of an Army general who had cut him off financially at a young age.  Very likable and intelligent, he came off somewhat like General Ike with a Fifties-style, New York Sinatra-esque dry accent and laugh, engaging in long tirades which were then called "drunkalouges".  Tom went on to sponsor, among others, one of the local pastors from Ireland, Father Sean.

This reminded me somewhat of the Republican presidential primary, including the debates, with Newt Gingrich as Captain Serenity, being also the adoptive son of an army officer.  Miracles do still happen.

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Moving in the Right Direction

Posted by Mike on Monday, December 12, 2011 2:53:11 PM
http://www.westernperspective.blogspot.com/
It looks like the burka-haters may get their way again in shaping US foreign policy.  Newt Gingrich has announced that he will appoint neo-con John Bolton as Secretary of State.

Gingrich is pre-Revolutionary Pennsylvania Dutch both from his natural and adoptive fathers.  According to Wikipedia, he has Scottish, Irish and English ancestry mixed in.  Raised Lutheran, he first became an evangelical Baptist and then Catholic.  Unlike Obama, there is no question that both of Newt's parents were US citizens.

Newt has wide popular appeal within the White middle class.  He brings together the older Germanic elements within American culture, both Catholic and Protestant, with the newer Germanic settlers particularly in the Midwest states crucial to a Republican victory in 2012.  (I once dated a Gingrich girl from Pennsylvania).

Newt will follow the Reagan playbook of caution in dealing with Islam, combining tough rhetoric with the moral strength to back it up.  This will prevent the recklessness which has led America into two costly, un-winnable wars.  War can only be justified as a last resort.

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Protecting America's Trees

Posted by Mike on Friday, December 09, 2011 2:25:48 PM
http://www.westernperspective.com/
Where I live, an HOA board took control of one "project" breaking off from a larger HOA several years ago.  The board has spent HOA funds to cut down several large oak trees, a large palm tree, several junipers, and a pine tree, all without notice to the owners within the project and apparently for the financial gain of board members.  I have contacted the city including the local police who say that it is a civil matter, and the Ventura County DA who so far has declined to conduct a fraud investigation.

Condo and other planned development homeowners have the right to quiet enjoyment of their property, and to not have their property depreciated in value and misused by unscrupulous board members. The cost of litigation is prohibitive for most homeowners, and the remedies are few, as damage awards would generally come out of HOA funds or property insurance bought from homeowners' own dues payments.

Homeowners must act in conjunction with other groups to stop greedy board members from stealing and misusing common homeowner funds, increasing monthly dues without justification, and destroying fixtures on the property including trees, so as to protect our local cities and towns from needless environmental harm.

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Projecting a Kinder Gentler Newt Gingrich

Posted by Mike on Tuesday, December 06, 2011 9:46:47 PM
http://www.westernperspective.blogspot.com/
In the world of mass media, perception is everything. To win the Republican Primary and go on to win the general in 2012, Newt should try to improve his public persona with a little earned air time.

My suggesting is that the Gingrich campaign send out feelers to get time on one of the leading cable networks. Specifically, they should ask Raymond Arroyo to allow Newt to appear for a live news interview on "The World Over" ASAP if he has not already done so. Secondly, they should request an appearance on "The Journey Home" to be scheduled on the first available date after the GOP Convention, regardless of whether or not Newt wins the nomination.  A little honey works better than lots of vinegar.

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The Cost of Conversion

Posted by Mike on Monday, December 05, 2011 2:01:09 PM
http://www.westernperspective.com/
During the last century, Austria was spared the bitter pill of communist tyranny only through prayer and conversion. The countries of the East Bloc had to undergo communist pitfalls as a means to conversion. God allows evil to bring about a greater good. Today, these eastern nations have market economies in which Christ's teachings are being put into practice.

Gingrich represents everything wrong with America, pecuniary, avaricious, crass, selfish, arrogant, aggressive. His conversion to Catholicism is like the return of the Prodigal Son to the Father, symbolizing America returning to God. At least he is not apologetic about his religious beliefs. Does this mean that Gingrich should be our next president? Can Gingrich instill authentic Christian values back into our government? Only if the American people are ready to accept the cost of conversion.

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Restoring America's True Identity

Posted by Mike on Friday, December 02, 2011 2:22:50 PM
http://www.westernperspective.blogspot.com/
With Barack and Barney out, Mitt or Newt in, America could once again project a strong male Teutonic image to the rest of the world. We could once again become a nation that defends weaker nations rather than bullying them, and that never grovels before others.

What are the chances of realization?

Newt is conniving, disingenuous, typical of the peasant constantly grasping at straws, building himself up, and aggrandizing power for himself at all costs.

Mitt is progressively becoming more conservative in his views and has shown that he will do what is best for America even under intense pressure and criticism, honest and fiscally responsible, as he has done for Massachusetts in creating a workable state health care system, unlike Obama's over-sized bureaucratic maze of regulations.

If Ron Paul does not win the Republican nomination in 2012, he would almost certainly run as a third party candidate. In that case, Newt would lose to Obama, Mitt would win.

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