Inside the Iraq War

The following partial quote from a book review appears on the Claremont Institute website. The review is long but definitely worth the time if you want a better perspective on the Iraq war.  The entire review can be read here

 

 

Inside the Iraq War

A review of War and Decision: Inside the Pentagon at the Dawn of the War on Terrorism, by Douglas J. Feith

By Stanley Renshon Posted March 26, 2009

When the political venom and hyperbole fade, those interested in understanding the decisions and debates behind the critical first years of the war to remove Saddam Hussein from power will have to put Douglas Feith's book on their must-read list. He was, of course, the much maligned and caricatured deputy under secretary for defense under Donald Rumsfeld, and as such central to the Pentagon's efforts and the interagency debates that shaped the war.
Mischaracterizations of Feith's intelligence and book have been echoed by shallow pundits like Dana Milbank who clearly have no first-hand knowledge of the war-making process. In fact, Feith has decades of government foreign policy experience and is a thoughtful and reliable guide to the many debates that took place inside the administration. His own views on these matters are expressed clearly, as are the facts and judgments that led him to take those positions. Unlike so many books that have emerged about the war, Feith lays out the different positions in those debates and respects his readers enough to allow them to sort through the evidence and arrive at their own judgments. One wishes, in vain, that other writers had demonstrated the same even-handedness in providing context and counter-arguments.
So many of the other books to emerge about the Iraq War to date focus on the difficulties that American forces faced because of the brutal insurgency that took hold after Saddam was disposed. The tenor of those books is reflected in their titles: Fiasco, Imperial Life in the Emerald City, and The End of Iraq: How American Incompetence Created a War Without End. The none too subtle subtext of books like these is that the decisions made by the Bush Administration were both wrong and thus obviously avoidable. The explanations for these "facts" in the view of critics is that they are the obvious result of ignorance, arrogance, incompetence, and an increasingly irrational investment in rigid neoconservative ideology at the expense of selecting sound options which to the critics, writing in retrospect, were obvious."

Something of historic proportions is happening

By Pam Geller

I am a student of history. Professionally I have written 15 books in six languages, and have studied it all my life. I think there is something monumentally large afoot, and I do not believe it is just a banking crisis, or a mortgage crisis, or a credit crisis. Yes these exist, but they are merely single facets on a very large gemstone that is only now coming into a sharper focus.

Something of historic proportions is happening. I can sense it because I know how it feels, smells, what it looks like, and how people react to it. Yes, a perfect storm may be brewing, but there is something happening within our country that has been evolving for about ten—fifteen years. The pace has dramatically quickened in the past two.

We demand and then codify into law the requirement that our banks make massive loans to people we know they can never pay back? Why?

We learn just days ago that the Federal Reserve, which has little or no real oversight by anyone, has “loaned” two trillion dollars (that is $2,000,000,000,000) over the past few months, but will not tell us to whom or why or disclose the terms. That is our money. Yours and mine. And that is three times the 700B we all argued about so strenuously just this past September. Who has this money? Why do they have it? Why are the terms unavailable to us? Who asked for it? Who authorized it? I thought this was a government of “we the people,” who loaned our powers to our elected leaders. Apparently not.

We have spent two or more decades intentionally de-industrializing our economy. Why?

We have intentionally dumbed down our schools, ignored our history, and no longer teach our founding documents, why we are exceptional, and why we are worth preserving. Students by and large cannot write, think critically, read, or articulate. Parents are not revolting, teachers are not picketing, and school boards continue to back mediocrity. Why?

We have now established the precedent of protesting every close election (now violently in California over a proposition that is so controversial that it wants marriage to remain between one man and one woman. Did you ever think such a thing possible just a decade ago?). We have corrupted our sacred political process by allowing unelected judges to write laws that radically change our way of life, and then mainstream Marxist groups like ACORN and others to turn our voting system into a banana republic. To what purpose?

Now our mortgage industry is collapsing, housing prices are in free fall, major industries are failing, our banking system is on the verge of collapse, social security is nearly bankrupt, as is medicare and our entire government, our education system is worse than a joke (I teach college and know precisely what I am talking about)–the list is staggering in its length, breadth, and depth. It is potentially 1929 x ten. And we are at war with an enemy we cannot name for fear of offending people of the same religion, who cannot wait to slit the throats of your children if they have the opportunity to do so.

And now we have elected a man no one knows anything about, who has never run so much as a Dairy Queen, let alone a town as big as Wasilla, Alaska. All of his associations and alliances are with real radicals in their chosen fields of employment, and everything we learn about him, drip by drip, is unsettling if not downright scary (Surely you have heard him speak about his idea to create and fund a mandatory civilian defense force stronger than our military for use inside our borders? No? Oh of course. The media would never play that for you over and over and then demand he answer it. Sarah Palin’s pregnant daughter and $150,000 wardrobe is more important.)

Mr. Obama’s winning platform can be boiled down to one word: change.

Why?

I have never been so afraid for my country and for my children as I am now.

This man campaigned on bringing people together, something he has never, ever done in his professional life. In my assessment, Obama will divide us along philosophical lines, push us apart, and then try to realign the pieces into a new and different power structure. Change is indeed coming. And when it comes, you will never see the same nation again.

And that is only the beginning.

And I thought I would never be able to experience what the ordinary, moral German felt in the mid-1930s. In those times, the savior was a former smooth-talking rabble-rouser from the streets, about whom the average German knew next to nothing. What they did know was that he was associated with groups that shouted, shoved, and pushed around people with whom they disagreed; he edged his way onto the political stage through great oratory and promises. Economic times were tough, people were losing jobs, and he was a great speaker. And he smiled and waved a lot. And people, even newspapers, were afraid to speak out for fear that his “brown shirts” would bully them into submission. And then, he was duly elected to office, a full-throttled economic crisis at hand [the Great Depression]. Slowly but surely he seized the controls of government power, department by department, person by person, bureaucracy by bureaucracy. The kids joined a Youth Movement in his name, where they were taught what to think. How did he get the people on his side? He did it promising jobs to the jobless, money to the moneyless, and goodies for the military-industrial complex. He did it by indoctrinating the children, advocating gun control, health care for all, better wages, better jobs, and promising to re-instill pride once again in the country, across Europe, and across the world. He did it with a compliant media–did you know that? And he did this all in the name of justice and…change. And the people surely got what they voted for.

(Look it up if you think I am exaggerating.)

Read your history books. Many people objected in 1933 and were shouted down, called names, laughed at, and made fun of. When Winston Churchill pointed out the obvious in the late 1930s while seated in the House of Lords in England (he was not yet Prime Minister), he was booed into his seat and called a crazy troublemaker. He was right, though.

Don’t forget that Germany was the most educated, cultured country in Europe. It was full of music, art, museums, hospitals, laboratories, and universities. And in less than six years–a shorter time span than just two terms of the U. S. presidency–it was rounding up its own citizens, killing others, abrogating its laws, turning children against parents, and neighbors against neighbors. All with the best of intentions, of course. The road to Hell is paved with them.

As a practical thinker, one not overly prone to emotional decisions, I have a choice: I can either believe what the objective pieces of evidence tell me (even if they make me cringe with disgust); I can believe what history is shouting to me from across the chasm of seven decades; or I can hope I am wrong by closing my eyes, having another latte, and ignoring what is transpiring around me.

Some people scoff at me, others laugh, or think I am foolish, naive, or both. Perhaps I am. But I have never been afraid to look people in the eye and tell them exactly what I believe–and why I believe it. I pray I am wrong. I do not think I am.

About the author: Pamela Geller, Atlas Shrug Blogger:

To contact the author: writeatlas@aol.com

Geller’s publishing career began at The New York Daily News and subsequently took over operation of The New York Observer as Associate Publisher. After the birth of her fourth child she left The Observer but remained involved in various projects including American Associates, Ben Gurion University and being Senior Vice-President Strategic Planning and Performance Evaluation at The Brandeis School. After 9/11 she immersed in the understanding and educating Islam’s geopolitics, terror, foreign affairs and its imminent threats the mainstream media and the government wouldn’t cover or discuss. Geller is the winner of the ‘Best New Blog’, ‘2005 Jewish and Israeli Blog Award’ and a finalist in the ‘2005 Weblog Awards.’ The objective of her blog is to cover related but hardly reported issues and events of great importance and her blog acts as a counter terrorism tool fighting the great fight, changing the world one word at a time. As a leading authority she is regularly interviewed and routinely confers with leading scholars on the Middle East, Islam, Eurabia, China and Russia issues providing unblinking and glaring examination of global affairs. She is also a member of Pajamas Media.

Gordon Brown gets a Tongue-lashing

Obama Touched It!

OK- So I found another video and it is delicious.

Unique Argument against Term Limits.

Enjoy this one. She is exceptional.

Follow Me!

There was a Pied Piper who said "We live in the greatest country in the world. Help me change it!" *And the people said, "Change is good!" Then he said, "We are going to tax the rich fat-cats,".. *And the people said "Sock it to them! and redistribute their wealth." *And the people said, "Show me the money!" And then he said, "Redistribution of wealth is good for everybody" *And Joe the plumber said, "Are you kidding me?" And Joe's personal records were hacked and publicized. And one lone reporter asked, "Isn't that Marxist policy?" And she was banished from the kingdom! Then someone asked, "With no foreign relations experience, how will you deal with radical terrorists?" And the Pied Piper said, "Simple. I'll sit down and talk with them and show them how nice we really are and they'll forget that they ever wanted to kill us all!" Then the Pied Piper said, "I'll give 95% of you lower taxes." And one, lone voice said, "But 40% of us don't pay ANY taxes." So the Pied Piper said, "Then I'll give you some of the taxes the fat-cats pay!" And the people said, "Show me the money!" Then the Pied Piper said, "I'll tax your Capital Gains when you sell your homes!" And the people yawned and the slumping housing market collapsed. And he said, "I'll mandate employer- funded health care for EVERY worker and raise the minimum wage." And the people said, "Gim'me some of that!" Then he said, "I'll penalize employers who ship jobs overseas." And the people said, "Where's my rebate check?" Then the Pied Piper actually said, "I'll bankrupt the coal industry and electricity rates will skyrocket!" And the people said, "Coal is dirty, coal is evil, no more coal!    But we don't care for that part about higher electric rates." So the Pied Piper said, "Not to worry. If your rebate isn't enough  to cover your expenses, we'll bail you out. Just sign up with ACORN and your troubles are over!" Then he said, "Illegal immigrants feel  scorned and slighted. Let's grant them amnesty, Social Security, free education, free lunches, free medical care, bi-lingual signs and guaranteed housing." And the people said, "Ole`! Bravo!" And they made him King! And so it came to pass that employers, facing spiraling costs and ever-higher taxes, raised their prices and laid off workers. Others simply gave up and went out of business and the economy slowed even further. Then the Pied Piper said, "I am the Messiah and I'm here to save you! We'll just print more money so everyone will have enough!"  But our foreign trading partners said, "Wait a minute. Your dollar isn't worth what it was. You'll have to pay more." And the people said, "Wait a minute. That's not fair!" And the world said, "Neither are these other, idiotic programs you've embraced. You've become a Socialist state and a second-rate power. Now you'll play by our rules!" And the people said, "What have we done?" But it was too late. If you think this is a fairy tale, open your eyes and ears.  It's happening RIGHT NOW!

United Nations on Islam

The American Thinker has a scary piece about the U.N. and a push by the 57 Islamic members to criminalize acts against Islam. You can read it here.

SC House Ways and Means- A bad idea on taxes

The House Ways and Means committee is scheduled to meet tomorrow afternoon (Thursday, March 26) to debate H3272, the point of sale bill. Your local legislator on Ways and Means needs to hear from hometown leaders today and tomorrow morning. Please tell them to vote NO on this bill. Use the talking points provided for you here on the Association Web site to help you get across to legislators the impact of this legislation to your hometowns.  

The Association lobbyists are at the State House working this issue, but your hometown voices make the real difference. Your legislators need to hear from you before the meeting tomorrow. For another perspective on this issue, read Cindi Ross Scoppe’s opinion column from yesterday’s State newspaper. If you have any questions or need any more information, contact Melissa Carter at 803.933.1251 (mcarter@masc.sc).
  _______________________________________________________________________________

Tuesday, Mar. 24, 2009

Scoppe: Dumb idea of the year: Tax houses the way we tax cigarettes

By CINDI ROSS SCOPPE - Associate Editor

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WHEN A PACK of cigarettes cost $1, the tax was 7 cents. Now that it runs around $3, the tax is 7 cents. If lawmakers don’t raise it, the tax still will be 7 cents when cigarettes cost $5 a pack.
Regardless of what you think of the rate, the cigarette tax approach doesn’t make much sense.
That’s roughly the way the real estate industry wants houses to be taxed. Ridiculous? Of course so. But here’s the astonishing thing: This idea hasn’t been laughed out of the State House. In fact, the plan has made it out of subcommittee, and the House Ways and Means Committee is going to seriously debate it on Thursday.

We already use a modified version of the cigarette tax approach to tax houses, businesses and other real property: Under a 2006 law, no matter how much your house’s value goes up, it’s taxed as if it increased only 15 percent every five years.
The one exception is if you sell your property. Then, the taxable value is reset to the sales price, and the new owner pays taxes on that amount — to begin with. The next time the county reassesses property, the new owner gets that same 15 percent cap you got on the increase in taxable value.
This “reset” was the one bone the Legislature threw to cities and counties when it imposed this tax-value cap, in order to make up a little bit for the erosion of their tax bases, and in turn to protect their ability to provide police, fire, garbage and other services.
But the people who sell houses and businesses for a living have concluded that this reset mechanism, commonly referred to as the “point of sale” provision, is destroying the real estate market in South Carolina.
Yes, I know blaming the bursting of the housing bubble on the tax reset is silly-talk, which completely ignores the fact that the nation’s financial system is in turmoil and loans have dried up for all but those with the best credit and we’re in the middle of the worst recession since the Depression, with more than one in 10 South Carolinians looking for work and those who have it terrified that they could be next.
But legislators believe what they want to believe — especially when they keep hearing it from some of their most politically active (and ubiquitous) constituents. So much so that they are considering not just eliminating the “reset,” but eliminating it retroactively. Under the bill up for debate (H.3272), the taxable value of any property sold since 2006 would be rolled back to what it had been before it sold, and then the cap on the increased value would be applied to prevent it from reaching the real value.
Say you bought a house in 2007 that had last been assessed for tax purposes at $150,000. You paid $200,000, and so your tax bill was based on that amount. Under current law, the taxable value at the next reassessment will be capped at $230,000. But if this bill passes, the taxable value would immediately drop to $150,000, and the most it could go up to at the next reassessment would be $172,500 — still far less than what you paid for your house. But it gets worse: Let’s say you keep your house for 20 years; by then, the most the taxable value could have gone up to is $263,000. But your house is in a great neighborhood, the real estate market has done well, and you sell for $1 million. The new owner will pay taxes as if the house were worth just $263,000.
Real estate agents complain that our current property tax system is creating an inherently unfair situation, where identical houses are taxed at far different rates. They are absolutely right. But they’re wrong about what’s causing the problem, and even more wrong about how to fix it. Worse, their “fix” will ultimately drive property values down even more, in a vicious cycle that destroys the tax base that allows local governments to provide the police and fire and other services that prop up property values.
The problem with our tax system is not the point-of-sale reset. It’s the 15 percent cap, which artificially holds down the taxes of people who are lucky enough to live in neighborhoods where the property values are skyrocketing (and yes, that will happen again one day). That value cap forces cities and counties to raise the tax rate more than they would have before the cap was instituted; this in turn means the people whose property values are increasing by less than 15 percent have to pay more in order to give that tax break to the more fortunate.
Just to complicate things a little more, there’s another cap, courtesy of that same 2006 law, that limits how much the tax rate can go up. In some cases, that cap will prevent cities and counties from raising tax rates enough to make up for the money they lose because the value cap artificially limits their tax base. This bill would further erode the tax base.
It’s probably true that more people would purchase properties if they knew their taxes would be kept artificially low. For that matter, even more would probably buy if they knew they wouldn’t have to pay any taxes, ever. That is, unless they stopped a moment and realized that meant they wouldn’t have police protection or fire protection or garbage collection or the other services that those taxes pay for.
The cigarette-tax approach is bad enough for cigarettes. It’s awful for houses — and, in the long run, for people who own those houses.
Ms. Scoppe can be reached at cscoppe@thestate.com or at (803) 771-8571.

The Aiken Horseshow- Come into The Woods!

The Aiken Horse Show is April 3, 4, and 5,

at the Show Grounds in Hitchcock Woods.

Don’t miss your opportunity to participate in this Aiken tradition.

Individual lunches may be purchased at a cost of $75 each, which includes a general admission parking pass.
General admission is $10 per vehicle (carload) at the gate.
Reservations can be charged by calling the Foundation office at 803.642.0528.



Hitchcock Woods Foundation
P.O. Box 1702
Aiken, SC 29802
(803) 642-0528

Orion-My favorite constellation

Has the U.S. education system failed? Orion has been my favorite constellation for more than 70 years.

How Would He Pronounce "Cassiopeia"?

Posted: 23 Mar 2009 08:16 PM PDT

Everyone knows that Barack Obama is lost without his teleprompter, but his latest blunder, courtesy of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, via the Corner, suggests that the teleprompter may not be enough unless it includes phonetic spellings. Obama was speaking at a White House roundtable on clean energy systems, and repeatedly saluted Orion Energy Systems, whose CEO, Neal Verfuerth, was present at the event. So Obama referred to "Orion" a number of times. Only problem was, he appeared to be unfamiliar with the word:

All terrific press for Orion, except that Obama kept pronouncing the company's name wrong, calling it OAR-ee-on.

Unbelievable. Orion is one of the best-known constellations, mostly because it actually looks like its namesake. So evidently we have to add astronomy to history and economics as subjects of which Obama is remarkably ignorant. I'm beginning to fear that our President has below-average knowledge of the world. Not for a President, but for a middle-aged American.
This latest episode suggests that Obama's teleprompter should up the ante. Iowahawk obtained exclusive access to the teleprompter's attempt to shake down the Big Guy (Warning, the teleprompter's language can be a little rough):

Legislators' retirement obscene

The following letter appeared in the Aiken Standard a few days ago. Even the City of Aiken pays a small pension to its elected officials who have served12 years or more. Admittedly its a small amount they get but it should be eliminated. The only way we will ever stop this absurdity is term limits for all

From the Aiken Standard




"When do the people of this state get smart and vote every House member in Columbia out of office? This inept group has presided over the lowest public school system in the country. Their policy on businesses has created the lowest average income per capita in the country. They have continually refused to reform state government, which is bloated with corruption and inefficiency.

Just one example - state Social Services, not to mention the cancerous deadbeat dads dilemma which the state is being fined millions of dollars a year by federal government. Wasting taxpayers money, I thought was their high point until I read about, of all things, these clowns' retirement program.

Can anyone out there, for heavens name, give me one good reason why state politicians need a retirement? When everyone I know wants term limits. The most absurd fact about what they voted themselves is their retirement benefits which will be 1.5 times their salary and even legislators who lose will also get 150 percent of their salary; while the average state employee retirement will be only 45 percent of their retiring salary. Folks, we need to get serious about our government before its too late."

Jet Beckum

Aiken

60 Minutes to Obama: Are you punch drunk?

President Barack Obama said he believes the global financial system remains at risk of implosion with the failure of Citigroup or AIG, which could touch off “an even more destructive recession and potentially depression.”

His remarks came in a“60 Minutes” interview in which he was pressed by Steve Kroft for laughing and chuckling several times while discussing the perilous state of the world’s economy.

“You're sitting here. And you're— you are laughing. You are laughing about some of these problems. Are people going to look at this and say, ‘I mean, he's sitting there just making jokes about money—’ How do you deal with— I mean: explain. . .” Kroft asked at one point.

“Are you punch-drunk?” Kroft said.

“No, no. There's gotta be a little gallows humor to get you through the day,” Obama said, with a laugh.

Obama tried to inject some optimistic notes into the interview, saying he sees “flickers of hope” that the economy is beginning to turn the corner.

And he seemed intent on cooling the populist anger rising in the country, particularly over AIG’s $165 million in bonuses. He signaled that he would like to see changes in a House resolution that would tax the bonuses at 90 percent, saying “we can’t govern out of anger.”

“Main Street has to understand, unless we get these banks moving again, then we can’t get this economy to recover. And we don’t want to cut off our nose to spite our face,” he said.

The interview captured the balancing act that Obama must strike on the economy. He gave a nod to public anger at Wall Street while saying it could not dictate his response.

He got in a few whacks of his own at Wall Street executives who contributed to the meltdown—referring to them ironically at one point as “the best and the brightest”—while being ever-mindful that he still needs their help to dig out of the crisis.

His talk of depression could be viewed as alarmist—but it also seemed aimed at bracing Congress and the public for the unpopular prospect of spending even more taxpayer dollars to prop up Wall Street. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is set to roll out a plan Monday aimed at restoring the flow of credit that would back up private investments with government funds.

Even his awkward laughter highlighted an issue Obama has faced dating back to the campaign, a sense that he sometimes is too “cool” and detached to fully grasp the public anxiety over mounting job losses and economic worries.

Still, Obama made clear that he’s afraid the nation hasn’t seen the worst of the economic crisis. He said the recession deepened faster than he expected, particularly in terms of job losses.

“If we did nothing, you could still have some big problems. There are certain institutions that are so big that if they fail, they bring a lot of other financial institutions down with them. And if all those financial institutions fail all at the same time, then you could see an even more destructive recession and potentially depression,” Obama said.

“I'm optimistic about that not happening,” he quickly added, “because I think we did learn lessons from the Great Depression.”

Obama also cited Wall Street’s high-risk, high-reward culture as a main cause of the economic meltdown. He took aim at traders and executives in personal terms—saying they need to leave New York for North Dakota or Iowa to appreciate how out-of-whack their pay looks to the average American.

“I mean there were a whole bunch of folks who, on paper, if you looked at quarterly reports, were wildly successful, selling derivatives that turned out to be. . .completely worthless,” Obama said, with a chuckle.

Council Update by Dick Dewar

AIKEN CORPORATION WORK SESSION – My last email mentioned a work session between the Council and the Aiken Corporation. Minutes of that session are now available and can be viewed at the City’s web site. That portion of the web site, however, is temporarily off-line for maintenance. I will post the link when it is available

WORK SESSION WITH RESIDENTS OF ORIOLE AND WREN PLACE – Council recently rejected on a 4-3 vote a proposal to rezone property on Silver Bluff Road from residential multi-family to General Business. The owner now has asked Council to consider a new offer for the property. In exchange for the City rezoning and permitting construction of a new commercial building on Silver Bluff Road, the owner would give most of the property to the City. The developer would keep a portion of land fronting Cardinal Drive for further use. The purpose of the work session is to receive input from the residents on their views of this proposal.

EQUINE COMMITTEE – The Equine Committee met for its annual meeting on Thursday, March 5, 2009. They discussed a number of topics, including accessory structures in the residential stable (RSS) and horse district (HD) zones. They are reviewing a potential revision to the Zoning Ordinance that would determine how much ‘hardscape’ could be installed on any given lot. They will meet again on March 31, and we anticipate additional information in April.

UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL DOCTORS’ OFFICE BULDING – The Planning Department has received a revised application for a Planned Commercial Concept Plan for its Silver Bluff Property. They now propose a single 17,000 square foot building. This revised application is on the April 14, 2009 Planning Commission agenda.

CITIZEN PARK HOURS - In order to limit our expenses in a tight budget year, the City is turning off all lights at Citizens Park at the conclusion of each evening event. It will close the gates to the park and prohibit any use of the park after it closes. The gates will be opened about 8 A.M. the next day.

CONVEYING LOTS TO HABITAT – We will have second reading of an Ordinance to convey lots to Habitat. They hope to build three homes each year. The first will be built cooperatively by the Aiken Rotary Club and First Baptist Church.

AMENDMENTS TO LIMITED BUSINESS (LB) ZONE - The Planning Commission has recommended that the Zoning Ordinance be amended for Limited Business zone so that other retail sales or service, which are currently permitted by right, be allowed in the future by Special Exception through the Board of Zoning Appeals. They based this decision on the premise that some retail sales or services may not be appropriate in the LB. zone. Letters were sent to property owners and no responses have been received.

$1.5 MILLION LOAN FOR CROSLAND PARK - We will have first reading of an Ordinance for a $1.5 million loan for Crosland Park. The City plans on acquiring approximately twenty homes in Crosland Park and totally rehabbing those for future purchase by non-profit corporations and the CDIC. This would permit the City to get started on the Crosland Park project immediately and for certain improvements to be made that could not be made under the normal grant process. The intent is to make these homes as energy efficient as possible, completing all normal renovations that would occur in an older home, plus installing irrigation systems for new grass and shrubbery in the yards. Kim Abney, our Finance Director, and Ben Moore, our Staff Attorney, have developed a short term loan which should be paid back this fall for the $1.5 million. The loan note in our packet authorizes repayment within a five year period, however. I expect the discussion tonight will clarify the disparity.

There is also a Resolution in Support of Crosland Park and Approval to establish a $1.5 million Line of Credit.

APPROVAL OF ACCOMMODATIONS TAX COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS – The Accommodations Tax Committee recently met to review applications for the upcoming awards cycle. There were 15 applications this year requesting $483,187.40 in funds. The funds available this year will be $129,100 not including a $5,000 contingency. The Committee decided to fund 13 of the 15 events as follows:

1. Citizens Park Bid Fees $4,500
2. Antiques in the Heart of Aiken – Aiken Center for the Arts $12,750
3. Exhibition and Arts Center Marketing – Aiken Center for the Arts $12,750
4. Battle of Aiken – Sons of Confederate Veterans $26,250
5. Promotions of Downtown Aiken – Aiken Downtown Development Assoc. $7,500
6 Aiken’s Makin – Aiken Chamber of Commerce $7,500
7. 302 Polo USPA Silver Cup/USPA Aiken Ladies Invitational $7,500
8. Ford Trucks Equestrian Balloon Festival – Aiken Land Conservancy $1,000
9. Aiken Horse Show – Hitchcock Woods Foundation $7,500
10. Aiken Polo Club Promotions & Magazine – Aiken Polo Club $18,750
11. Aiken Spring Classic – Aiken Land Conservancy $7,500
12. Aiken Trials – Aiken Land Conservancy $7,500
13. Aiken Fall Steeplechase – Aiken Steeplechase Association $7,500

Not funded were Weeks Tennis Center and Aiken Marti Gras.

PERSONAL FROM DICK DEWAR – This past week, two of my colleagues announced their decision to fulfill their promise to constituents to abide by their promise to serve only two terms on the Council. Dick Smith and Jane Vaughters have made enormous contributions to the City of Aiken in their nearly eight years of service. Their efforts to manage the growth of our City incurred the wrath of many in our community, (sometimes over the top in their personal attacks), to label them as anti-growth. They have showed during their eight years that the City’s growth can be managed. A look at the new businesses during their terms is proof. It is now common that nearly every candidate for City Council will identify with the need to manage growth even when they are financially supported by developers, the Chamber of Commerce, and other businesses who do not want to pay for the infrastructure costs their projects cause. Dick and Jane led the way and I earnestly hope that like-minded citizens will join me on the Council to continue to manage the growth of our City. Dick represents the Woodside area (District 4) and Jane is a member at-large representing the entire city. With the current turmoil in Washington, I have spoken to many citizens who now feel energized to get involved. If government is to work effectively, everyone must do their part. If you believe in the type of government that Dick, Jane and I do, please consider running for City Council.

Council Member Lessie Price has announced her intent to run for re-election. She now has 20 years of service on City Council and represents District 2. Don Wells is the other at-large member of the Council and has announced his intent to run for his second term.

The Hinterland Speaks!

Jack DeVine has done it again. He should be on the national circuit.The following appears in the Aiken Standard today.


Was fundamental change in our nation part of the plan?
3/18/2009 3:52 PM
By JACK DeVINE

Guest columnist

Last year's election of Barack Obama to the U.S. presidency was enthralling, magical, historical - it will be regaled for years to come.

But it was hardly a slam dunk. Obama won by 53 percent to 46 percent, a solid victory margin - but even so, nearly half of the electorate voted for the other guy. And the race was neck and neck until the economy imploded last fall - only then was it a lock for Obama.

My point is not to diminish Obama's victory, just to restore a bit of perspective. Because I don't see anything in the election of 2008 that gives Mr. Obama license to fundamentally transform our country into a socially, economically and philosophically different place than the land of our heritage - let alone to do so unilaterally and overnight.

The United States of America has been on the steady course set by our founders 230 years ago - not flawless, but a profoundly successful course. Is there a greater nation on earth?

Yes, Barack Obama ran under the campaign slogan "change," and we can credit him now for his supercharged efforts to deliver on his promise. But that campaign change theme was vague and undefined, an intentionally blank sheet. And it seems obvious that many, perhaps most, of those who voted for Obama did so because he is an immensely attractive candidate, bright, energetic, inspiring, and they trust him to lead us in fixing the things that need fixing, whatever they are. But did they intend to give him a green light to redesign our nation? I don't think so.

Since his inauguration, Obama has signed the $700-plus billion stimulus plan and a $400-plus billion omnibus spending bill. He has unveiled proposals to greatly expand nationalized health care and education, a plan for a carbon cap-and-trade scheme and other dicey changes in energy supply policy, a massive and unprecedented homeowners mortgage relief plan. He's issued orders revising our policy and practice in dealing with suspected terrorists. His budget proposal would pay for staggering costs by steady reduction in the years ahead in defense spending - a scary idea in this dangerous world, by adding further tax burden on those who already shoulder most of the load, and of course by borrowing or printing money.

Individually these have enormous implications and each deserves careful consideration. In composite, they are in fact transformative, in ways that we can't even comprehend and I suspect will not like very much. Certainly, they will saddle future generations with enormous debt. They will diminish our defensive capability and national security. They will make the federal government proportionally larger and more powerful than ever in our history. They will increase substantially the dependency of many Americans on government entitlements. They will "redistribute wealth" (much more than it is currently redistributed by our properly progressive tax structure), arguably rewarding failure and punishing success.

Each of these has its proponents. But interestingly, we've tried some similar tacks in the past (reduced defense spending and expanding welfare, as examples), found them ineffective and worked hard to get back on track. And other nations have gone down this road - the jury may still be out on the long term fate of Western Europe but many signs are bleak. When and why did we decide to be a France?

I am not shocked or surprised to find out that Barack Obama is very liberal, that he has vastly more faith than I (and most Americans) in government as the solution to every problem, and that he wants to make a clean break with the last administration. Yes, he promised change. But he also promised transparency and bipartisanship. We gave him a ticket to lead. We did not give him a ticket to ignore the views of half the electorate and to abandon much of our heritage.

This is way beyond "yes we can." We're dealing with the future of the nation we love and we'd better do it carefully, collectively and openly.

The writer is a businessman who makes his home in Aiken.

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Free Money

 Carl Langley joins the ranks of those who criticize the Aiken Standard for its stand on the Stimulus.To their credit they do publish the criticisms even though they don't always print all of the news. See Jim Wetzel's letter of March 17.




March 18 Letters to the Editor
3/17/2009 2:42 PM
Don't take the bait of 'free money'

The Aiken Standard has now joined Rep. Jim Clyburn among the elite ranks of those condemning Gov. Mark Sanford for snubbing the offer of free stimulus money from Washington.

I realize how hard it is to resist the lure of free money, but Rep. Clyburn, like all liberal Democrats, thinks everything in life is free. I didn't expect that of the Aiken Standard.

For the record, our governor didn't turn down the free money outright. He just wanted to use the funds to help the state offset its debt and for other uses that will not nurture recurring expenditures.

For those less informed than the governor and I, let me remind folks that federal money is often freely given and just as often freely taken away. This leaves the ones foolish enough to fall for the lure fishing about to find ways to deal with the recurring costs. And that means from each budget year to the next and for as far as one can see into the future.

If the federal government would send down the money with an irrevocable guarantee that the cash flow would keep on coming is one thing. But to assure taxpayers they would not be saddled with future costs is a radically different matter.

During my eight years as mayor of New Ellenton I am proud to say I never rose to the bait, whether it be "free money" from state or federal levels. I know how those people operate (all bureaucrats will probably run shell games in the afterlife), and all that is needed is for you to take the bait. Once done you are hooked for keeps.

I have been at odds with the governor on various issues but on this one I am on his side and urging him to stay firm. My message is don't take the bait because the billion dollars you take this year won't be there next year and you will be forced to either raise taxes dramatically or cut costs dramatically. Either way the governor loses because the home folks have short attention spans, forgetting, of course, that Washington started it all.

I can't imagine the Aiken Standard chiding the governor, but I expect no less from Rep. Clyburn. He is fused for life to the public teat and apparently thinks everything (mainly money) is free. I wonder if he has ever held a real job and had to make a payroll. His biography lists him as a lawyer, which serves as a disqualifier immediately when it comes to handling other peoples' (taxpayers) money.

So let us go forth and battle bravely into the teeth of this recession and don't be foolish enough to fall for the old budget gimmick of here you see it and there you don't. You can go fiscally blind that way!

Carl Langley

Aiken

Jim Wetzel gives the Aiken Standard Advice

The following letter by Jim Wetzel appeared in the Aiken Standard today. Jim rightfully chides the paper  for its failure to report the Governor's statement of his reasons for not accepting all of the "stimulus." I doubt the Standard will actually give it's readers the opportunity to read the Governor's statement so I have included a link.

Letter to the Editor

For a “news” paper that hasn’t seen fit to report on Governor Mark Sanford’s statement of his reasons for not accepting all of the stimulus package money the Aiken Standard seems quick in rejecting his stand, suggesting a position not arrived at through knowledge or the exercise of reason.

In Governor Sanford’s letter of March 10, 2009 to the members of the legislature he outlined: that his team had carefully examined the stimulus bill and its long term implications on the people of South Carolina; that the $1.2 billion stimulus is short term, would be added to the state budget over the next two years and would raise the annualized state budget by 10%; 75 % of that money is mandated by federal statute for directed uses that cannot be redirected by the state; the state currently is burdened with $20 billion in unfunded political promises; the stimulus added annualized state budget and directed uses of the funds will only compound the state’s long-term budget liabilities; but 25% of that money (approximately $700 million) is for discretionary spending by the state governor; and using that money to pay down the very sizable state debt and contingent liabilities would not penalize the people of South Carolina, would avoid budget shortcomings and ensure the state’s long term economic strength.  Having lived and struggled with a spendthrift legislature this is merit display of concern by our governor for our state and its citizens.

We are in a live-for-today, get-what-you-can and world of irresponsibility where government money is nobody’s money, to be grabbed and used whenever opportunity permits.  But government money is always taxpayer’s money (in this case ours, our children’s and our grandchildren’s).  It is commendable that there is still a person in public office, specifically Mark Stanford, who really cares about the future prosperity of our state and nation, and who would be so diligent and thoughtful as to carefully state his reasons.  I suggest that you read his letter; report it as “news” to your readers and take that opportunity to rethink your position.

Jim Wetzel

There they go again!

Aiken politics came a little early this year! The following article and the one that appeared yesterday regarding Jane Vaughters' plans and businesswoman  Liz Stewart's  intentions to run for an at large seat on City Council were initiated by the Aiken Standard. It appears that the same old crowd of developers aided by the  paper is trying to jump start their chosen candidates campaign so as to discourage others from running. Deja Vu all over again.




From the Aiken Standard

3/14/2009 12:25 AM

Dick Smith won't seek re-election

By HALEY HUGHES
Staff writer

Aiken City Councilman Dick Smith announced Friday he will not seek re-election for his Fourth District seat, joining fellow Councilwoman Jane Vaughters in the decision to step down at the end of eight years of service.

Like Vaughters, who currently fills an at-large seat, Smith said he too believes in term limits. They were both elected in 2001.

"I think it's time to move on," he said. "It has been an honor to serve. Jane Vaughters and I have accomplished quite a bit."

The names of Dr. Bauer Vaughters and wife DeeDee, Jane Vaughters' son and daughter-in-law, have been floating around as possible candidates. Bauer Vaughters said neither he nor his wife will run for City Council at this time.

But the ballot for the City of Aiken's November municipal elections continues to take shape - another Council incumbent will seek re-election and a newcomer has announced he is running for an at-large seat.

Second District Councilwoman Lessie Price said Friday she will attempt to retain her seat on Council, one which she has held since the late 1980s. In fact, she was the first woman to run for and be elected to the governing body.

"We have seen tremendous growth. And I think, overall, it has been well planned. It has had a positive impact. We have dealt with housing, traffic and economic development and have tackled those as a body," she said of the areas she has focused on during her time on Council and will continue to focus on.

And though a formal announcement will come soon, Kent Cubbage told the Aiken Standard on Friday he is running for a City Council at-large seat.

"I decided to do this two years ago," Cubbage said. "I was inspired by the birth of my daughter. I figured I have to get involved because I want her to know the Aiken I love so dearly. I am more youthful than the other Council members and no one will outwork me or outwalk me. I will be the ears and voice of the whole City. I have the skills and experience to help lead the City."

He worked for an environmental consulting firm when he first moved to Aiken during which he said he learned the ins and outs of zoning, green space and adaptive property reuse issues. He is also a graduate of Leadership Aiken County, a 15-year Aiken resident and currently works as the biology program coordinator at Aiken Technical College.

"My motto is 'vision we need now,'" Cubbage said. "The City is at kind of a lull. When we come out of the current economic situation, I think growth will reach a peak again. And we could lose the Aiken we've come to cherish if we don't have the vision we need now. A vision both in favor of the citizens and businesses. Fostering and promoting entrepreneurship will get us through this economic situation. Small business is what is going to get us through this."

Cubbage will run as a Republican.

The City's other at-large seat is currently filled by Councilman Don Wells. Wells said Thursday he will run again.

Aiken Planning Commissioner and business woman Liz Stewart has also declared her intentions to run for an at-large seat.

Sanford to Reject some Stimulus Funds

McClatchy Washington Bureau

Posted on Tue, Mar. 10, 2009

South Carolina's Sanford to become first governor to reject funds

James Rosen | McClatchy Newspapers

last updated: March 11, 2009 07:48:41 AM

WASHINGTON — South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford is expected Wednesday to become the first governor to formally reject some of the federal stimulus money earmarked by Congress for his state.
The move will cement Sanford's growing reputation as a political powerhouse among Republican party stalwarts nationwide — though how much of the estimated $8 billion in stimulus funds destined for South Carolina will be affected is unclear. The law allows state legislative leaders to accept funds the governor rejects.
"Our objections to the so-called stimulus bill have been well-chronicled for the way it spends money that we don't have and for the way this printing of money could ultimately devalue the American dollar," Sanford said on Tuesday, even as he acknowledged that he'll accept some.
"Those of us opposed to this package lost the debate on these merits, and I now think it is important we look for creative ways to apply and use these monies in accordance with the long-term interests of our state," he said.
Still, Sanford's formal rejection will enhance his standing as a Republican willing to challenge President Barack Obama, a position Sanford first took Dec. 1, when he traveled to Philadelphia to challenge the then president-elect directly at a meeting with the nation's governors.
Since then, a handful of other governors — all Republicans, all talked about as possible 2012 presidential candidates — have joined Sanford in saying they'd reject at least some of their states' stimulus shares.
Sanford's outspoken aversion to using deficit spending to spark an economic recovery has garnered him national TV interviews, op-ed columns in the Wall Street Journal and articles about him in other prominent publications.
All the attention, plus Sanford's increased travel to address Republicans in Washington, Texas and beyond, have sparked talk that he's eyeing a 2012 presidential campaign.
"I don't have a clue whether he wants to run, but he obviously is one of our better-known Republican governors, having run the Republican Governors Association and been around the country and on TV a lot," said Charlie Black, a prominent Republican consultant who was a senior adviser to Sen. John McCain's losing White House bid last year.
"He's very popular," Black said. "His brand of conservatism emphasizing fiscal conservatism is very popular with our grassroots."
Sanford urged 1,000 activists, gathered in late February at the Ronald Reagan Banquet in a Washington hotel, to be prepared to lose, and to feel happy about it.
"Would you be willing to support a cause or a candidate that is likely to lose?" Sanford asked conventioneers at the Conservative Political Action Committee's annual gathering.
As the diners leapt to their feet and applauded, Sanford declared:
"The name of the game is staying true to the principles that got you into politics in the first place _ and letting the chips fall where they may."
Nicole Quinn, of Lancaster, Pa., who waited in a long line to hear Texas Rep. Ron Paul speak at the CPAC convention, said Sanford first came to her attention when he kept his term-limits promise and left Congress in 2000 after serving six years in the House of Representatives.
Now, Sanford's vocal opposition to Obama's $787 billion stimulus plan is prompting Quinn and others to hope he seeks the White House in 2012.
"I supported Ron Paul for president in 2008," Quinn said. "However, if Sanford runs in 2012, I would support him because he would do more than any other candidate to restore the Republican message. Unlike Ron Paul, Mark Sanford has the potential to win over mainstream voters. Whether or not he could beat Barack Obama, he would restore Republican credibility."
Sanford, 48, was elected to Congress in 1994 in a midterm election that gave Republicans control of the House for the first time in half a century.
While most of his colleagues abandoned their term-limit pledges, dropped plans to jettison the Department of Education and became less averse to federal spending, Sanford slept on a cot in his office, opposed most appropriations bills _ and left after six years.
In 2002, Sanford became the first South Carolina governor to rise to the state's highest office without first serving in the state's legislature.
If Sanford's firebrand fiscal austerity wins him activist followers, it also has sparked political clashes.
Republican legislators who control the South Carolina General Assembly have joined Democrats in overturning hundreds of Sanford's line-item vetoes, rebuffing his bid to slash the budget in one of the nation's poorest states.
State House Speaker Bobby Harrell, state Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn McConnell, state Senate Finance Committee chairman Hugh Leatherman and other Republican legislative leaders have worked with U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, the House majority whip, to ensure that the state doesn't get left off the stimulus gravy train.
Clyburn, a Columbia Democrat and the highest-ranking African-American in Congress, crafted several provisions in the stimulus bill aimed at bypassing Sanford and other governors who oppose it.

Aiken County Republican Party Convention

Aiken County Republican Party's County Convention

From Chairman Dennis Saylor

First of all, thank you, everyone who turned in your Precinct Reorganization packet. I am pleased with the response from the grassroots.

Second, thanks to Roger Rollins and David Lobb, we have secured the River of Life Church on Highway 1 as the location for the Aiken County Republican Party's County Convention. The Convention will take place on Friday, April 24. Registration will begin at 6:30 p.m. and the convention will begin at 7:00 p.m.

I'll share more details, such as the line-up of guest speakers, as they become available.

Third, please don't forget that the Precinct Reorganization Make-up Meeting for still-unorganized precincts will take place on Monday, March 16 at the Aiken County Council Building Auditorium (736 Richland Avenue West, Aiken, SC 29801.)

Thanks for your commitment to the Aiken County Republican Party. Together, we can do it.

Dennis Saylor
Chairman, Aiken County Republican Party


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Pelosi Power

the Air Force as her "personal airline." 

FOXNews.com

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

 

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has repeatedly requested military aircraft to shuttle her and her colleagues and family around the country, according to a new report from a conservative watchdog group. 

Representatives for Judicial Watch, which obtained e-mails and other documents from a Freedom of Information request, said the correspondence shows Pelosi has abused the system in place to accommodate congressional leaders and treated the Air Force as her "personal airline." 

The e-mails showed repeated attempts by Pelosi aides to request aircraft, sometimes aggressively, and by Department of Defense officials to accommodate them. 

"I think that's above and beyond what other members of Congress are doing and what is expected of our elected officials," said Jenny Small, a researcher with the group. 

The group reported that Pelosi was notorious for making special demands for high-end aircraft, lodging last-minute cancellations, and racking up additional expenses for the military. 

In one e-mail, aide Kay King complained to the military that they had not made available any aircraft the House speaker wanted for Memorial Day recess. 

"It is my understanding there are NO G5s available for the House during the Memorial Day recess. This is totally unacceptable ... The Speaker will want to know where the planes are," King wrote. 

In another, when told a certain type of aircraft would not be available, King wrote: "This is not good news, and we will have some very disappointed folks, as well as a very upset Speaker."
Pelosi's office has not yet responded to requests for comment. 

The Honeymoon is Over!!

The media found out he is a Republican!!!

Congressional Benefits

For the most part I have been very critical of our Congress. There is little doubt that our current financial problems stem from actions and inaction by both sides of the aisle over a long time. Too many have made it a career. The pay and privileges ares good and the egos grow ever larger. I have long advocated term limits but without a voter revolt it will never happen. On the other hand I keep hearing people say that members get a "full pension after five years". The pension vests after five years but it is not payable until age 62 and the amount is based on years of actual service. So it is not quite as bad as it sounds. You be the judge.



CONGRESSIONAL BENEFITS

Prior to 1984, neither Members of Congress nor any other federal civil service employee paid Social Security taxes. Of course, they were also not eligible to receive Social Security benefits. Members of Congress and other federal employees were instead covered by a separate pension plan called the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS). The 1983 amendments to the Social Security Act required federal employees first hired after 1983 to participate in Social Security. These amendments also required all Members of Congress to participate in Social Security as of January 1, 1984, regardless of when they first entered Congress. Because the CSRS was not designed to coordinate with Social Security, Congress directed the development of a new retirement plan for federal workers. The result was the Federal Employees' Retirement System Act of 1986.

Members of Congress receive retirement and health benefits under the same plans available to other federal employees. They become vested after five years of full participation.

Members elected since 1984 are covered by the Federal Employees' Retirement System (FERS). Those elected prior to 1984 were covered by the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS). In 1984 all members were given the option of remaining with CSRS or switching to FERS.

As it is for all other federal employees, congressional retirement is funded through taxes and the participants' contributions. Members of Congress under FERS contribute 1.3 percent of their salary into the FERS retirement plan and pay 6.2 percent of their salary in Social Security taxes.

Members of Congress are not eligible for a pension until they reach the age of 50, but only if they've completed 20 years of service. Members are eligible at any age after completing 25 years of service or after they reach the age of 62. Please also note that Member's of Congress have to serve at least 5 years to even receive a pension.

The amount of a Congressperson's pension depends on the years of service and the average of the highest 3 years of his or her salary. By law, the starting amount of a Member's retirement annuity may not exceed 80% of his or her final salary.
According to the Congressional Research Service, 413 retired Members of Congress were receiving federal pensions based fully or in part on their congressional service as of Oct. 1, 2006. Of this number, 290 had retired under CSRS and were receiving an average annual pension of $60,972. A total of 123 Members had retired with service under both CSRS and FERS or with service under FERS only. Their average annual pension was $35,952 in 2006.

City Council Update

AIKEN CORPORATION WORK SESSION – The work session on February 23rd with the Aiken Corporation began with a lengthy briefing on the history and accomplishments of this non-profit community organization. They have every right to be proud of what they have done for the Aiken community since their founding in the early 1980s. After their briefing, Council had an excellent discussion which focused on several matters of importance. Issues related to the Railroad Depot and African American Cultural Museum were discussed along with several concerns I voiced about the Fiscal Year 2008 Audit. If you are interested further in this item, please refer to the minutes of the work session which are not yet available. I will post the link on the next Aiken Journal entry.

APPOINTMENTS TO BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS – I am please to announce the appointment of Stephen Mueller, who operates the Rose Hill B&B, to a position on the Accommodations Tax Committee and the reappointment of Pat Andringa to the Arts Commission and Robert Besley to the Building Code Appeals Committee.

CONVEYANCE OF CITY-OWNED LOTS TO HABITAT – At Monday’s meeting we will have First Reading of an Ordinance to give four city-owned lots to Habitat. Each year as they build houses and use these lots, we would replenish them with additional vacant lots.

AIKEN'S 175TH BIRTHDAY- This is an unusually light session for a City Council meeting so this posting will be very brief. I do want to let everyone know that planning is active for celebrating the 175^th birthday of the City of Aiken during the 2010 year. Bill Reynolds, who is the Chair of the Planning Commission, was nominated and elected as Chair for this massive planning event. Mayor Fred Cavanaugh is the Honorary Chair. Richard Pearce is the Staff Representative so please call him if you want to volunteer to serve on one of the Committees. He can be reached at 642-7657.

Global Warming makes me Hot Under the Collar

It is hard to believe there are so many dupes out there. On the other hand we have a President and an administration that are prepared to destroy whats left of our economy.Wake up America! This video came from Politico.com

Obama Speeches Like Sex

Thanks to Powerline for bringing this video to our attention,