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Alexander's Essay – 7 May 2009
This Week: The Big Pork Pandemic, 'Teabag Wavers,' Amendments and the NDP...

By Mark Alexander

"If men through fear, fraud or mistake, should in terms renounce and give up any essential natural right, the eternal law of reason and the great end of society, would absolutely vacate such renunciation; the right to freedom being the gift of God Almighty, it is not in the power of Man to alienate this gift, and voluntarily become a slave." --John Adams

If you have tired of seeing Barack Hussein Obama's mug everywhere during his first months in office, there is good reason. According to a study released by the Center for Media and Public Affairs, Obama received more TV coverage in the first 50 days of his regime than George Bush and Bill Clinton -- combined. According to the Media Research Center's Noel Sheppard, "The three broadcast network evening news shows have basically devoted on average about half of their entire newscasts to Obama."

Somehow I am not surprised.

We may have survived the first hundred days of Obamamania (if only because our children and grandchildren will get the bill), but beware, Obama and his statist ilk have their sights set upon much bigger policy feats on the fast track to Socialism.

Next up, socialized medicine and Obama's so-called "cap-and-trade" regulatory and tax plan -- the most massive power grab (pun intended) in history.

On our way to those policy battles, here are a few relevant items from the last week.

The Big Pork Pandemic

Last week, I asserted in "The Peaceful Revolution's First 100 Days," that "flu fear" would be managed according to what White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel calls "Rule 1" of Obama's political playbook: "Never allow a crisis to go to waste. They are opportunities to do big things."

Indeed, the model for Obama's amazing success, both his election and the implementation of colossal "economic reforms" during his administration's first 100 days, is to inflate an event into an immense crisis, produce fear and panic, then squeeze every ounce of opportunity out of the resulting public hysteria.

Thus, on Day 99, after the media fanned the flames about a "swine flu pandemic," Obama warned, "This is obviously a serious situation, serious enough to take the utmost precautions." (Predictably, he then asked Congress for $1.5 billion in emergency funding.)

The same day, Joe Biden, live on ABC, stirred the panic, "I have told members of my family I would not go anywhere in confined places now -- not on airplanes or subways ... not in cars or classrooms."

Now, I do not mean to suggest that influenza is something to sneeze at. In 2006, the latest year of record, 56,326 Americans died from influenza strains in the United States according to the Centers for Disease Control, and $6.1 billion was spent by the central government on prevention and treatment. (Sidebar: Comparably, in 2006 there were 12,113 AIDS-related deaths and $13.7 billion dollars for U.S. HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment -- that's twice the spending on a totally preventable disease which kills less than one fourth of the number of citizens who die from the flu.)

As of this writing, a full three weeks into the "pandemic threat," one American citizen has died of symptoms associated with swine flu.

Of course, the administration's agenda was not about saving lives. The fear mongering had a more sinister motive. According to sources within the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Defense, Team Obama used the "serious situation" to collect reams of additional psychometric and sociometric data on public reaction to an imminent crisis in order to further refine their "Rule 1" model -- using fear as a catalyst for rapid policy implementation.

Frankly, I am surprised that DHS and HHS did not issue a joint statement that swine flu originated at the "tea party" tax protests a week earlier. Let's see if, before the week is over, somebody in Obamaland will suggest that the administration's quick action "saved" thousands of jobs, er, uh, lives.

As you recall, the weekend before Obama's election Joe Biden proclaimed: "Mark my words: It will not be six months before the world tests Barack Obama like they did John Kennedy. Watch, we're going to have an international crisis, a generated crisis, to test the mettle of this guy. ... It will not be six months. I can give you at least four or five scenarios from where it might originate, and he's gonna need help. ...We're gonna need you to use your influence ... within the community, to stand with him. Because it's not gonna be apparent initially, it's not gonna be apparent that we're right. ... Gird your loins. Obama is gonna be left with the most significant task. It's like cleaning the Augean stables, man."

At the time, this comment seemed like another one of "Crazy Joe's" demented remarks, but maybe Joe is crazy, like a fox. Perhaps he wrote "Rule 1."

"Mark my words," the Obama administration will continue to use the mass media to promote mass crises to create mass hysterics in order to implement mass change ... and maybe sooner than later.

'Teabag Wavers'

A few weeks ago, on the day before tax day (that is 15 April for those of you who do not pay taxes -- but then they are not reading The Patriot, are they?), White House secretary of dezinformatsia Robert Gibbs was asked, "Is the president aware that these [tax day tea parties] are going on...?" He replied, "I don't know if the president is aware of the events," but later told ABC that the Obama was not aware of these events -- in effect, thumbing his nose at the protestors, all of whom are on DHS watch lists anyway.

Last week, on the occasion of his 100th day in office, Obama further denigrated tax protesters by telling a group of his sycophants, "So, you know, when you, uh, when you see, you know, those of you who are wa...watching certain, uh, news channels that, uh, which I am not very popular, and you see folks waving tea bags around (laughter), le...let me just remind them that I am happy to have a serious conversation..." (And you thought Bush 43 had problems with articulation?)

Fact is, for each of his first hundred days, Obama redistributed more than $25 billion in future tax receipts, per day, and that was just for his $2.5 trillion budget. When considering all the other spending (or "investment" as Obama calls it) and interest that will be due, it computes to almost $100 billion a day. (Sidebar: In letters to their constituents, Democrat members of Congress are reporting income redistribution through the so-called "American Recovery and Reinvestment Act" as "award notifications" which implies the ARRA is just what it seems -- pork-barrel sweepstakes, not unlike the "Making Work Pay Tax Credit.")

Now that is a real "Pork Pandemic."

Consequently, I am sure that those "folks waving tea bags around" are the same folks who are still "bitterly clinging to guns and religion," and I am equally sure they are "serious."

The Second and Tenth Amendments

In what amounts to a serious Second and Tenth Amendment challenge to federal authority, the Montana Legislature passed and its Democrat governor signed a law which specifies that guns which are produced, sold and maintained within the state are exempt from federal regulations.

Essentially, Montana is setting up a Tenth Amendment challenge -- as soon as the first arrest is made for purchasing a gun without the user submitting to federal mandates such as background checks, licensing and registration, the state will assert its Tenth Amendment rights under our Constitution.

Other states are preparing similar legislation, but I would suggest one of them take the Tenth Amendment challenge a major step forward.

Let's see a state pass a law requiring that any and all federal authorities who wish to carry a firearm within the boundary of said state, must be in possession of a "right to carry" permit issued and authorized by that state's governor.

And speaking of "right to carry," in my home state of Tennessee, legislators are considering a bill to allow duly authorized carry permit holders to keep their weapons on their person in restaurants which serve alcohol (not to be confused with bars), similar to surrounding states.

The statists are protesting that doing so will undoubtedly lead to tragedy. However, one would be hard pressed to find any incident in any year when an authorized holder of a carry permit committed a felony with their weapon. By contrast, in the latest year of record, there were 13,470 fatalities involving alcohol-impaired drivers.

Now that is a tragedy. Perhaps they should not allow alcohol in bars...

Of course, this whole debate on federal versus state gun regulations and concealed carry permits is a straw man. Personally, my right-to-carry permit is the Second Amendment...

And last but not least, our National Day of Prayer

In 1775, the First Continental Congress called for a National Day of Prayer. In 1952 Congress established the NDP as an annual event by a joint resolution, signed into law by President Truman. In 1988, the law was amended to designate the first Thursday in May for NDP, and was signed into law by President Reagan.

The mission of the National Day of Prayer Task Force is to communicate with every family the need for personal repentance and prayer, and to mobilize families to personal and corporate prayer, particularly on behalf of the nation and those in leadership on all levels of local, national, church and educational areas of influence.

In 1800, John Adams wrote in a letter to his wife Abigail, "I Pray Heaven to Bestow The Best of Blessing on THIS HOUSE, and on ALL that shall hereafter Inhabit it. May none but Honest and Wise Men ever rule under This Roof!" It was his last year in office, but the first year any president occupied the White House.

Franklin D. Roosevelt had Adam's quote lettered in gold in the marble over the fireplace in the State Dining Room of the White House.

Indeed, prayer is the only enduring path to hope and change, and our nation needs a lot of both right now. However, the current inhabitant of the White House will not be observing NDP. Robert Gibbs told his press club, "We're doing a proclamation, which I know that many administrations in the past have done," but Obama will not be inviting faith leaders to the White House (like Wright, Pfleger and Farrakhan?), or attending any of the events associate with NDP.

That notwithstanding, The Patriot Post's National Advisory Board and staff invite you to join us, and millions of our countrymen, in prayer for our nation today at 12:00 local time. The NDP theme for this year, "Prayer ... America's Hope," is based on Psalm 33:22, "May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you." Link to the National Day of Prayer Web site for more information.

*****

Veritas vos Liberabit -- Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus, et Fidelis! Mark Alexander, Publisher, for The Patriot's editors and staff.

(Please pray for our Patriot Armed Forces standing in harm's way around the world, and for their families -- especially families of those fallen Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen, who granted their lives in defense of American liberty.)