Rational Nation USA

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny Food for thought. At least for those republicans that have retained the ability to think outside the box their party has sculpted for them or they created for themselves. In recent decades, the Republicans have usually been the more nationalist of the two major parties. Whereas Democratic foreign policy experts have been more at home among global elites, and more enthusiastic about pursuing altruistic humanitarian goals, Republican experts have been less comfortable at conferences abroad, and more concerned about the safety of the American homeland and its traditional allies than about trying to improve the lot of the rest of the world. As one might expect, defense budgets have usually fared better under Republican than Democratic presidents. The problem for Republicans is that there are various kinds of nationalism. There is, for instance, the aggressive Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld brand of nationalism, in whi...

As we gather with family and friends to celebrate our National Holiday Rational Nation USA wishes all it's readership, whether they be liberal, conservative, libertarian, Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Atheist or whatever the very best of Thanksgivings and humbly asks that all remember how truly fortunate we are to live in a land where freedom of political and religious speech is allowed. It is I think appropriate on this day to post George Washington's 1789 Thanksgiving Day Proclamation. Whether one is religious and believes in one supreme being or not Thanksgiving personifies the importance of being thankful for all we have achieved as a nation and if the USA returns to, and holds true to the principles of The Age of Reason and the Enlightenment we will be fine for another 224 years. To all you extreme partisans and zealots I say, THINK ABOUT IT. Happy Thanksgiving All!!! Thanksgiving Proclamation Issued by President George Washington, at the request of Congr...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny One of these guys is going to be very happy on Election Night 2014 (Photo: EPA/Aude Guerrucci) As the tumble from lofty heights and the expectations that accompanies such heights continues Peresident Obaba and his fellow Democrats have reason to be concerned. VERY concerned. With the horrendously botched ACA roll out and the huge credibility gap created by the Presidents misleading statement that "If you like your health insurance keep you can keep your health insurance plan, PERIOD" the opportunity for the Republican party to retain the House and retake the Senate in 2014 is becoming increasingly possible. With the tide turning against the Presidents party the enthusiasm within the ranks of Republican and Libertarian activists will build and grow exponentially. Not unlike the "Hope and Change" of 2008 and 2012. From The Washington Post no less. President Obama’s poll numbers are at re...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny Brave New World and Big Brother continuing to grow in the Land of the Free, the United States of America. Government is simply growing too effing big for its britches. Thank you GWB, BHO, and all your henchmen. A very disturbing trend, one the government is very likely to accelerate in the coming months and years. The Washington Post - Microsoft is moving toward a major new effort to encrypt its Internet traffic amid fears that the National Security Agency may have broken into its global communications links, said people familiar with the emerging plans. Suspicions at Microsoft, while building for several months, sharpened in October when it was reported that the NSA was intercepting traffic inside the private networks of Google and Yahoo, two industry rivals with similar global infrastructures, said people with direct knowledge of the company’s deliberations. They said top Microsoft executives are meeting thi...

Is it possible? As Dana Milbank , Washington Post opinion writer points out most likely for the birthers, those, who like Donald Trump believe President Obama forged his birth certificate, is not a USA born citizen, and therefore an illegitimate president. So much for the loonies. However, the Obama Administration and its practice of excluding photo journalist in favor of in house photographers to record official events is troublesome, at least IMO it is. From the Washington Post opinion pages. Is the Obama White House airbrushing history? It was a hallmark of the Stalin era: Fallen Soviet leaders vanished from official photographs. Nobody accuses President Obama of such subterfuge (well, nobody except for those who believe he forged his birth certificate), but a change in longtime practice in the White House has raised questions about the integrity of images Americans see of their president. The White House has increasingly excluded news photographers from Obama’s official ...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny For some strange reason I'm getting the sense "the deal" may very well turn out quite unfortunately to be a dude. This from FARS News Agency . “What has been released by the website of the White House as a fact sheet is a one-sided interpretation of the agreed text in Geneva and some of the explanations and words in the sheet contradict the text of the Joint Plan of Action (the title of the Iran-powers deal), and this fact sheet has unfortunately been translated and released in the name of the Geneva agreement by certain media, which is not true,” Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham said on Tuesday. She said that the four-page text under the name of the Joint Plan of Action (which has been released by the Iranian foreign ministry) was the result of the agreement reached during the Geneva talks and all of its sentences and words were chosen based on the considerations of all parties to the tal...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny As the floodgates of bad news for ObamaCare and President Obama seem to continue to widen. Or, is it just more anti Obama nutter talk fueled by the wacko right wing extreme obstructionists of the Tea Party wing of the Republican Party? According to Mark Halperin health care rationing and "death panels" are going to be a reality of the ACA. This from TPM One of the Beltway's best-known pundits gave credence this week to perhaps the fringiest of all Obamacare conspiracy theories. In an interview on Monday with the conservative Newsmax, Time's Mark Halperin said that so-called "death panels" are enshrined in the Affordable Care Act. "It's going to be a huge issue," Halperin said. "And that's something else about which the President was not fully forthcoming or straight-forward." "So, you believe there will be rationing, a.k.a 'death panels'?...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Ty r a nny Is it all scare tactics? Right wing hyperbole orchestrated to bring down the hated ACA and deny President Obama's hoped for legacy? A bunch of nutters as the left not so fondly refers to those who have opposed the ACA since the start just being obstructionists? Certainly the ACA roll out has been riddled with difficulty, including security concerns. President Obama's credibilty has unquestionably been damaged, a result of promises broken with respect to oe being able to keep there insurance if they liked it. And now this... From Fox News . Almost 80 million people with employer health plans could find their coverage canceled because they are not compliant with ObamaCare, several experts predicted. Their losses would be in addition to the millions who found their individual coverage cancelled for the same reason. Stan Veuger of the American Enterprise Institute said that in addition to the individual ca...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny With many lawmakers wary over the Iran nuclear deal its looks like the right and the left may have rediscovered bipartisanship Top lawmakers on both side of the aisle on Sunday voiced skepticism about the newly struck agreement with Iran, and vowed to keep up the pressure with sanctions. Senior members in both chambers said that, at first glance, Iran got the better end of the deal with western powers, China and Russia – effectively exchanging looser sanctions for very little progress in impeding Tehran’s nuclear capabilities. Some powerful lawmakers have said they’re willing to seek new sanctions now, but delay their implementation until after the six months covered by the current deal. But others weren’t even willing to go that far. Sen. Chuck Schumer (N.Y.), the No. 3 Democrat in the chamber, called the deal disproportionately good for Iran , and that it was only strong sanctions that gave the United States...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation U S A Lib e rty Tyr a nny Fifty-six percent questioned say they disapprove of Obama's performance, an all-time high in CNN surveys. It just doesn't seem to be getting any better for the embattled President. Nice guy that he is, passionately concerned about finding that silver limning in the clouds for ALL Americans, it appears at this point in time credibility (and honesty) still remains important to the American people. Given the President's recent credibility gap (rightfully so) he certainly does have much work to do. It is looking like a Republican House, AND Senate may be within the realm of possibility following the 2014 mid term elections. From recent CNN/ORC International polling. Washington (CNN) As President Barack Obama's approval rating hits another all-time low, a new national survey also indicates that Americans say the President has less power than congressional Republicans when it comes to shaping events ove...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny Could there be a problem with the Obama administration and it salesmanship? I find it odd that the years immediately preceding Obama's presidency support was much higher for government involvement in healthcare. Or, could it be the result of incessant hammering away by republicans against ObamaCare since 2009? GALLUP - The most recent data were collected in Gallup's annual Health and Healthcare poll, conducted Nov. 7-10. The percentage of U.S. adults who said it is the federal government's responsibility to ensure all Americans have healthcare coverage peaked at 69% in 2006. Attitudes began to shift significantly in 2007, and continued to change through the time President Barack Obama took office in 2009. Americans who feel healthcare coverage is not the federal government's responsibility have been in the clear majority the past two years. Most Republicans Now View Ensuring Healthcare Coverage...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny Zimmerman, 30, is the former Neighborhood Watch volunteer who was acquitted in July on a charge that he murdered 17-year-old Trayvon Martin last year. So, here we are. George Zimmerman AGAIN involved in inappropriate and what could have been AGAIN deadly activity. Is this man just dumb, or is he mentally unstable, and severely so? Trayvon Martin is dead from a gunshot fired by George Zimmerman. Zimmerman is in custody following a domestic dispute with Samantha Scheibe before allegedly pointing a shotgun at her head and asking her if she really wanted to call the police. Is anybody else thinking maybe society should lock the dude up and throw away the keys this time? Orlando Sentinel - George Zimmerman was arrested on domestic violence charges Monday after pointing a shotgun at his girlfriend, breaking a table and pushing her out of her Seminole County home, deputies said. Zimmerman is being held without ...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny Well there are some, the faithful, that continue to believe that President Barack Hussein Obama is one of the best presidents ever . Rather than pontificating on the obvious counter reasons why he is not, I think it best to put up the list by Matthew Lynch, Ed.D for you to consider and then decide for yourself whether or not Dr. Lynch is indeed correct. He is for The People. He is for civil rights. He is for one race -the human race. He is for a healthcare system that brings hope and healing to the hurting. He is for the middle class. He is for women's rights. He is for doing away with pomp and circumstance. He is for the environment. He is for veterans. He is for peace. He is for education. He is for entertaining the masses. Okay, I know, I know. But before dismissing out of hand (or laughing) go HERE and get to the meat and justification for Dr. Lynch's one of the best president...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation U S A Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid spoke to the press on the vote to limit filibusters on presidential nominees on Capitol Hill on Thursday in Washington. Hot Damn! I never really held with much of what ole Senator Harry Reid was pushing (most of it was snake oil) but on the Filibuster change I just gotta give the dude credit. He is spot on with using the nuclear option and precipitating the change of the rules of the Senate with regard to the Filibuster and the "super majority" BS. Remember folks (especially those inclined to power) the the sword of change and the benefits thereof work both ways. Kudos to Senator Harry Reid on this one. When somebody gets it right for a change it is fitting they receive the acknowledgement for a job well done. WASHINGTON — The curtailment of the filibuster, probably the most well-known aspect of the Senate in popular culture, came in a politically charged vote T...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e r ty -vs- Tyr a nny The President signature, and flawed legislation, the ACA is unquestionably going to impact the President and the democrats who solidly supported him and his push for the legislation. With the President's credibility, indeed even his honesty in question by many, his task over the remainder of his administration is formidable. Some, like Nancy Pelosi, the loyal soldier she is have a different opinion... Washington (CNN) – House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said Sunday neither she nor President Barack Obama misled the American people when they said, during the run-up to the passage of Obamacare, that people could keep their health insurance plans. Pelosi clarified their remarks, saying they only meant people could keep their plans if they had already signed up before Obama signed the bill in 2010. But there is this... He said it over and over again. Like this time: “So let me begin be saying this t...

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by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny President Obama may be facing his Waterloo. Self made and potentially as destructive to his legacy (and the viability of the party that stood solidly behind him) as anything the Republicans could have done to railroad his signature domestic legislation the ACA, or his legacy. Starting with the horrendous roll out, followed by millions of cancellation letters from health insures precipitated by ACA regulations, the realization by Americans that the President had, at the very least mislead them with his repeated promises they could keep their health insurance and their doctor, his proposed executive "fix" to the problem he and his administration created, a fix that itself may be outside his administrative authority, and finally his own party is beginning to question his course as they seem to be lining up behind the bills put forth by Republican Upton or Democrat Landrieu. It certainly must be tough to be ...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny Pay particular close attention at the 1 minute 30 second mark. If anyone can actually figure out exactly what she rambled on about please share your thoughts. Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news , world news , and news about the economy Nails on a chalkboard? Yep, for sure. Read the article at TPM . Via: Memeorandum

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty - vs- Tyr a nny I found the following article by Ann Althouse interesting. More than just interesting really. Refreshing and honest as well. In yesterday's interview with Chuck Todd, Obama said: " You know, one of the lessons -- learned from this whole process on the website -- is that probably the biggest gap between the private sector and the federal government is when it comes to I.T. ... Well, the reason is is that when it comes to my campaign, I'm not constrained by a bunch of federal procurement rules, right? " That is, many have pointed out that his campaign website was really good, so why didn't that mean that he'd be good at setting up a health insurance website? The answer is that the government is bad because the government is hampered by... government! "And how we write -- specifications and -- and how the -- the whole things gets built out. So part of what I'm gonna be look...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny I am a fiscal conservative, a social libertarian, not a democrat, not a republican... I am an American and I vote, like millions of other Americans do. Although the total turnout is shameful to say the least. That is, however a story for another day. In reading THE WEEK I admit to being a bit puzzled. The week is a conservative leaning publication so it is natural they would pitch the party line that republicans need to attract people from the traditional conservative strongholds. In other words white males over 30, married women (presumably with children), and the fundie right Christians. The only problem with this recipe is there are increasingly less people in the demographic group this publication is suggesting republicans target. Ultimately it is a losing strategy and will insure 50 years (or more) of democratic rule. Period. The real answer is to create a much bigger tent by adopting a socially libertarian...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny Polls are admittedly mere indicators of the political pulse of the public. It is true arguments can be made that depending on the political preference(s), or leanings of the particular organization responsible for any specific poll that the poll may be manipulated through specific wording of poll questions. Questions intentionally designed to generate the response desired by the pollster. Few thinking individual would disagree. President Obama's job approval ratings have been steadily declining and almost all polls reflect this decline. After considering multiple sources of information over a two week period Pew Research, Center for the People the Press seemed to be the most nonpartisan and thus reflective of the public's general sentiments. A quick summary: Overall job approval rating  41% Americans disapprove of the way Obama is handling four of five major issues. Terrorism being the lone exception. O...

by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation U S A Lib e rty -vs- Tyr a nny Division within the GOP is stark and becoming more so with each passing day. The Tea Party wing of the GOP, while taking principled positions has been completely unyielding, therefore making any compromise virtually impossible. Rather than viewing compromise as the positive outcome of hard fought political battles they view compromise as total defeat. Ultimately, at least in the minds of the purist, this means advancing the march of the great evil bogeyman. I'm sure you all can guess what that is. The Democratic party on the other hand is enjoying relative unity, a good thing for the party faithful going into the mid term elections in November 2014. Already controlling the Senate, as well as the presidency, the House may be up for grabs if the general electorate continues to view the GOP in an increasingly unfavorable light. Further, many in the GOP are starting to view their party more unfavorably as a result ...