Near EMP Hit

Published: Fri, 08/02/13

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In This Issue:
Obama and Holder Think They Can Try to Tell Rick Perry and Texas How to Conduct Elections! By Richard C. Young
“Raise the Debt Ceiling,” Calls Out Treasury Secretary Jack Lew! By Richard C. Young
Military Budget: 4.6% of GDP Equals 68% of 1940 GDP in Real Terms By Richard C. Young
The Most Aspirational Cities By E.J. Smith
Progress on the Skinny Front! By Richard C. Young
Near EMP Hit By E.J. Smith
Union Membership Drops 30 to 60 Percent! By E.J. Smith
Latest NSA Revelations By E.J. Smith
It’s a Beautiful Morning By E.J. Smith
150 Healthiest Foods on Earth: #6 By Richard C. Young

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Obama and Holder Think They Can Try to Tell Rick Perry and Texas How to Conduct Elections!

The Constitution offers zero support for the administration’s efforts to bully Texas. In fact, the Constitution says in Article.11. Section. I. about states and elections, “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 States may be entitled in the Congress.” That’s it! Not much wiggle room for Holder and Obama, is there? Nope, none at all.

What hubris and Constitutional overreach. At its,core the Constitution was designed to protect the states from central government. Founders Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, George Mason, John Dickinson, Sam Adams, and Richard Henry Lee codified the mission of the states in the original Articles of Confederation. The Articles, to even a greater degree than the Constitution, mandated the “sovereignty, freedom and independence” of the states. In terms of “The most convenient management of the general interests of the United States the Articles said, delegates shall be annually appointed in such manner as the legislatures (not the people and certainly not the central government) of each state shall direct.” The intentions of the Founders allowed no opportunity for either the President or the Attorney General to have a thing to say as to how individual states conduct their affairs.

President Obama chimes in saying we are deadbeats if we do not pay bills already racked up. How do these two have jobs? Why do Americans pay a lick of attention to either man’s view on the debt ceiling? Let me lay out the non-partisan facts for you. I am neither a Republican nor a Democrat. And I have been sharply critical of both the Bush and Obama administrations for a wide array of reasons, mostly on constitutional grounds, so here is the short story.

Under Presidents Bush and Obama, Federal Debt Held by the Public has exploded to nearly $13 billion from only $3 billion. And under President Obama, Federal Debt Held by the Public as Percent of GDP has exploded to 70% from 36% when the President took office. If either the Treasury Secretary or the President were running a large, publically owned company, each would have long since been fired. A business cannot be run with such profligate spending.

The only way the government can make this financial charade work is to print money out of thin air. Businesses and states do not have printing presses. So, no, the issue today is not by how much we should raise the debt ceiling, but by how much it is going to be reduced this year and what spending programs and departments will be cut or totally eliminated. Neither the Constitution nor the intent of the Founders as presented in the original Articles of Confederation supports the central government political/financial octopus overseen by Presidents Bush and Obama. It’s long past time to put our house back in constitutional order. Treasury Secretary Lew is sending Americans the wrong message. The facts I have presented are not refutable, as Mr. Lew knows full well. There you have it.

“In terms of real resources, the 4.6% of GDP devoted to the military last year was equivalent to 68% of the 1940 GDP. “

An astounding revelation from the Cato Institute’s Doug Bandow. In an article appearing overseas in Japan Times, Doug unfurls a torrent of shocking details underpinning a military complex run amok. Mr. Bandow reveals that (1) the Pentagon budget is the price of America’s foreign policy; (2) the U.S. mostly subsidizes the defense of its prosperous allies from anyone to everyone; (3) a smaller international presence would reduce the size of the target on Americans’ backs; (4) nation building reflects the triumph of hope over experience; (5) the sequester is but a scalpel when a meat-ax is required.

In any case, Washington no longer can afford to play the role of global cop. America’s $16.8 trillion national debt is just the start; unfunded liabilities run Uncle Sam’s total tab to more than $220 trillion.

Military outlays account for a smaller percentage of the GDP than during World War II and the Cold War, but America’s current GDP is 15 times as large as in 1940 and more than 11 times as large as in 1950. Thus, in terms of real resources the 4.6 percent of GDP devoted to the military last year was equivalent to 68 percent of the 1940 GDP.

Entitlement outlays will grow more quickly than military expenditures in coming years, but the fact that government devotes too much to Social Security is no argument for spending too much on the military. The U.S. cannot afford any budget sacred cows.

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The Most Aspirational Cities

It comes as no surprise that Texas has four of the top 15 aspirational cities. As Joel Kotkin and Wendell Cox point out, Aspirational Cities appeal to blue-state progressives by using red-state economic policies.

Finally, we considered quality-of-life factors such as traffic congestion, housing affordability, and crowding—which are keenly relevant to young families hunting for the places with the best “inventory of the possible.” In a sense, we believe aspirational cities reflect a kind of urban arbitrage, where people look for those places that provide not just economic and cultural opportunity but a cost structure that allows them to enjoy their success to the fullest extent.

Our top two cities reflect the importance of this arbitrage opportunity. Both No. 1, Austin, Texas, and No. 2, New Orleans, are places where people can enjoy the cultural amenities and attitudes of “progressive” blue states but in a distinctly red-state environment of low costs, less regulation, and lower taxes. These places have lured companies and people from more expensive regions, notably California and the Northeast, by being not only culturally rich but also amenable to building a career, buying a home and, ultimately, raising a family in relative comfort.

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Progress on the Skinny Front!

You know that I am on commander Gary Taubes’ “Get Skinny” regime. Well, I am pleased to report to you an 18-pound reduction in unbecoming suet. As I have explained, in my case an addiction to carbohydrates in the form of pasta, pizza and organic yogurt shakes were the culprits. And did I mention the ultimate fat pill, beer? Probably not. OK then, all are history. And I am well on my way to my 180-pound final goal. My success is all thanks to a little will power and Gary’s great book “Why We Get Fat.” Ben Franklin wrote, “Nothing is more common in the newspapers than people, who after eating a hearty supper, are found dead in the morning.” Yikes, I am glad I am sticking with Gary.

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Near EMP Hit 2-Weeks Ago

The Obama administration loves to talk about energy yet our decrepit electric grid is still at the mercy of an EMP.

The earth barely missed taking a massive solar punch in the teeth two weeks ago, an “electromagnetic pulse” so big that it could have knocked out power, cars and iPhones throughout the United States.

Two EMP experts told Secrets that the EMP flashed through earth’s typical orbit around the sun about two weeks before the planet got there.

“The world escaped an EMP catastrophe,” said Henry Cooper, who lead strategic arms negotiations with the Soviet Union under President Reagan, and who now heads High Frontier, a group pushing for missile defense.

“There had been a near-miss about two weeks ago, a Carrington-class coronal mass ejection crossed the orbit of the Earth and basically just missed us,” said Peter Vincent Pry, who served on the Congressional EMP Threat Commission from 2001-2008. He was referring to the 1859 EMP named after astronomer Richard Carrington that melted telegraph lines in Europe and North America.

“Basically this is a Russian roulette thing,” added Pry. “We narrowly escape from a Carrington-class disaster.”

Pry, Cooper, and former CIA Director James Woolsey have been recently demanding that Washington prepare the nation’s electric grid for an EMP, either from the sun or an enemy’s nuclear bomb. They want the 2,000-3,000 transformers in the grid protected with a high-tech metal box and spares ready to rebuild the system. Woolsey said knocking out just 20 would shut down electricity to parts of the nation “for a long time.”

But Washington is giving them the cold shoulder, especially the administration. Woolsey told Secrets that some in Congress are interested in the issue, but the administration is just in the “beginnings” of paying attention.

When given a choice to pay union dues or keep the money to feed their family, union members choose family. You know the real one, not some made up one by the union bosses. In Wisconsin union membership has plummeted thanks to Gov. Scott Walker’s policies that give public sector workers the right to choose whether or not to pay union dues. The proof is in the pudding. And union leaders are responding by turning up the heat and charging existing members more. That’s pathetic. The Washington Times reports:

An analysis by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel found that unions have lost between 30 percent and 60 percent of their members. Membership in District Council 48 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, for example, declined from 9,000 members to fewer than 3,500. The trimmed membership rolls mean less money for the union bosses. Local 48’s budget once reflected a $7 million surplus, and now the union is $650,000 in the red. The national union was required to bail out the local, and it’s not even a stimulus.

Wisconsin does not yet offer workers in the private economy the freedom to reject forced union membership, but other states are moving to do so. A right-to-work law took effect last year in Indiana, and a similar law became effective in March in Michigan. That’s good news for employees who want to keep all of their paycheck, not so good for the unions and their officers.

Michigan, once one of the most unionized of all the states, saw union membership decline from 671,000 to 629,000, and in Indiana, union membership dipped from 302,000 to 246,000. This pattern will likely continue. The National Education Association, the largest teachers union and one of the most partisan of all unions, lost nearly 7 percent of its members between 2008 and 2009. To avoid taking a hit in the union treasury, the union bosses raised the dues of the remaining members. According to numbers compiled by the Education Intelligence Agency, 44 state NEA affiliates have reported losing thousands of members.

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Latest NSA Revelations: We See You!

In the latest NSA revelations from Snowden we learn about XKeyscore.

A top secret National Security Agency program allows analysts to search with no prior authorization through vast databases containing emails, online chats and the browsing histories of millions of individuals, according to documents provided by whistleblower Edward Snowden.

The NSA boasts in training materials that the program, called XKeyscore, is its “widest-reaching” system for developing intelligence from the internet.

The latest revelations will add to the intense public and congressional debate around the extent of NSA surveillance programs. They come as senior intelligence officials testify to the Senate judiciary committee on Wednesday, releasing classified documents in response to the Guardian’s earlier stories on bulk collection of phone records and Fisa surveillance court oversight.

The files shed light on one of Snowden’s most controversial statements, made in his first video interview published by the Guardian on June 10.

“I, sitting at my desk,” said Snowden, could “wiretap anyone, from you or your accountant, to a federal judge or even the president, if I had a personal email.“

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It’s a Beautiful Morning

One of my favorite magazines (yes they still exist) is my monthly subscription to Modern Drummer . The most recent issue features The Rascals drummer Dino Danelli. When The Rascals were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame they were introduced by Little Steven Van Zandt (pre-Sopranos) who said the following about Danelli, “With all due respect to my drummer friends—and most of my friends are drummers—he was and still is the greatest rock drummer ever.” The Rascals have such a wonderful sound it’s hard to believe it’s just the four of them: Felix Cavaliere, Gene Cornish, Dino, and Eddie Brigati. This summer you can see them live in “Once Upon a Dream”—a mix between a live concert by The Rascals and a bio much like “The Jersey Boys. ” And not surprisingly, it is produced and directed by Van Zandt, featuring the original four Rascals.

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150 Healthiest Foods on Earth: #6

Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., C.N.S., has created one of the most vital books on the health of your family you will ever find, The 150 Healthiest Food on Earth . The lavishly illustrated, 358-page weighty tome gives you more vital information on foods that can keep your family healthy than any other publication I have ever come across. And I am always on the look out. I have given the book to family members and often advise it for others. I have now selected a “Great 10” list of food choices to share with you. My goal here is pass on ideas that perhaps you did not previously know about.

It is explained that Shiitakes are deeply valued for their medicinal effects as well as their great taste. Shiitakes are noted for containing enzymes and vitamins that do not normally appear in plants, like all eight essential amino acids and one of the essential fatty acids, linoleic acid. Shiitakes contain a chemical component Lentinan, also referred to as beta 1,3 glucan, a polysaccharide that, according to Jonny Bowden, has potent immune-stimulating effects. Finally, it is explained that Japanese researchers have found a compound in Shiitakes called eritadenine that is useful in lowering blood cholesterol.