Like most Americans that can remember back to 2001, I was ecstatic that the Patriots won the Super Bowl after the terrorist attacks on NYC to the the twin towers. And, like most Americans, I am tired of the Patriots being in the Super Bowl. I couldn't care less about the Super Bowl this year. Like any other unrelated American institution, national politics has entered the arena.
Why does anyone care what relationship may or may not exist between Tom Brady and President Trump? I am an Ohio State Buckeyes fan. I am supposed to hate Tom Brady because he has yellow streaks down his helmet. To be completely honest, I care more about college football than any NFL game, but that is just a side note. Back to Brady. I don't know his politics. I treat him like I do any famous person. I don't want to know their politics. It is only after I learn them that I stop supporting them. Read my Celebrity Cesspool blog for more on this.
At this point I have heard that Tom Brady is a devout Christian, philanthropist and great role model. I honestly don't know if any of this is true, but why is it even being brought up? I don't need any media or other celebrity telling me who I should or should not associate with. Why does anyone care what they think about Tom Brady? My only reason for believing that Brady is a Christian is because he is being attacked.
Just a few days ago Whoopi Goldberg was equating Trump to the Taliban. Other pundits were claiming that Brady is un-American for associating with Trump while Colin Kapernick (that guy that took a knee during the national anthem several times) is a true patriot. How dumb are we now? Does anyone really believe that dishonoring those who fought and died for our freedoms (whats left of them anyway) is more American than having an unsubstantiated relationship with the current President?
I don't offend easily, but this really ticks me off. I am so tired of the militant leftists trying to tell me how I am in violation of American values when there is nothing these liberals and statists believe that is close to moral. I am fine with these individuals exercising their right to free speech. However, it is time to stop consuming the information. I am not calling for a boycott. I think those are stupid. What I am saying is to act and live your conscious. Live your beliefs. Don't support companies and people who act contrary to your beliefs. Don't watch TV and movies that have material in them you don't support.
At the end of the day, it is time to stop giving credibility to speculation and the PC police. My ultimate judge is God alone and I seek the counsel of my closest friends from my church and my small group. Best I can tell is that if the world says I should live one way, I should probably do the opposite. I'm just sorry that the cynic in me believes that whatever the media says is the way we should live, the contrary is likely the better option.
Anyway, go Patriots......and I don't mean the NFL team.
Freedom and Peace,
Geoff
Thursday, February 2, 2017
Tuesday, January 31, 2017
Celebrity Cesspool
So does anyone actually care what the celebrities say? I have heard several "famous" people rant and rave about the results of the election, but have never heard such overt disregard for the system that elected Donald Trump. I know that I am a bit of a loner, and usually I have better things to do than to watch TV and movies anyway, but at this point I have absolutely no interest in supporting any entertainment that I have to pay for.
The reality of this is that it won't hurt the celebrity. They don't need my $10-$20 for a movie ticket or a concert. If many are like me and just simply stop going to support the movies and TV, concerts, etc. it is the real working class people who are hurt. It is the stage hands, the grips, the unsung heroes who make the entertainment industry successful who are hurt. I am not calling for a boycott. I am calling for education and for action by people who are willing to speak. I enjoy a good movie or concert like the next person, but I can also think of plenty of ways to spend my entertainment budget on things that don't support the people who use their celebrity to insult me and my family.
Politics is an ugly game and I too have been drawn in by the mudslinging, but I have never been so disappointed in people for approving the vulgar language, the extreme insults, the vile rhetoric and the simple disrespect of common people to try to make a point. I am appalled that anyone would approve of, let alone condone the blatant rioting, looting, and vandalism that is being associated with the Trump protesters.
What I am most concerned about is the lack of condemnation from all parties on the willful destruction of the private property. I don't care whether your representative won the election or not, it is the responsibility of all elected leaders to stand up to crime and incivility. Furthermore, no self respecting citizen should be tolerant of these childish and illegal acts. There needs to be a serious crack down on these vandals and an example should be made of them all. Protesting is not only acceptable, it is a right and may be exercised at will. However, even protests require a certain level of responsibility.
Let me go one step further and be honest. I have liberal friends who are appalled by the behavior of many of these criminal protesters. I want to acknowledge that not all Clinton voters are accepting or condoning the behavior of these individuals. However, if the celebrities who think about blowing up the White House are representative of the typical liberal voter, there is a serious issue about what is acceptable. I am all for free speech, but there are consequences as well, whether that means that we stop using our hard earned money to support these celebs or that their comments are investigated just as anyone no one has ever heard of would be, it is time that equal protection and prosecution under the law become active and that the rule of law be upheld. I for one would rather go fishing anyway.
God Bless,
Geoff
The reality of this is that it won't hurt the celebrity. They don't need my $10-$20 for a movie ticket or a concert. If many are like me and just simply stop going to support the movies and TV, concerts, etc. it is the real working class people who are hurt. It is the stage hands, the grips, the unsung heroes who make the entertainment industry successful who are hurt. I am not calling for a boycott. I am calling for education and for action by people who are willing to speak. I enjoy a good movie or concert like the next person, but I can also think of plenty of ways to spend my entertainment budget on things that don't support the people who use their celebrity to insult me and my family.
Politics is an ugly game and I too have been drawn in by the mudslinging, but I have never been so disappointed in people for approving the vulgar language, the extreme insults, the vile rhetoric and the simple disrespect of common people to try to make a point. I am appalled that anyone would approve of, let alone condone the blatant rioting, looting, and vandalism that is being associated with the Trump protesters.
What I am most concerned about is the lack of condemnation from all parties on the willful destruction of the private property. I don't care whether your representative won the election or not, it is the responsibility of all elected leaders to stand up to crime and incivility. Furthermore, no self respecting citizen should be tolerant of these childish and illegal acts. There needs to be a serious crack down on these vandals and an example should be made of them all. Protesting is not only acceptable, it is a right and may be exercised at will. However, even protests require a certain level of responsibility.
Let me go one step further and be honest. I have liberal friends who are appalled by the behavior of many of these criminal protesters. I want to acknowledge that not all Clinton voters are accepting or condoning the behavior of these individuals. However, if the celebrities who think about blowing up the White House are representative of the typical liberal voter, there is a serious issue about what is acceptable. I am all for free speech, but there are consequences as well, whether that means that we stop using our hard earned money to support these celebs or that their comments are investigated just as anyone no one has ever heard of would be, it is time that equal protection and prosecution under the law become active and that the rule of law be upheld. I for one would rather go fishing anyway.
God Bless,
Geoff
Wednesday, December 7, 2016
No More Taxes and the IRS Sucks
So I haven't posted since the election. I know, I know. A political blog that doesn't even acknowledge the election? Get over it. I figured that there was no real analysis that I could do that would somehow change or alter anyone's perspective. Now looking back, we have something to talk about.
Why all the tax threats? I am all for keeping American jobs right here. However, threatening to tax the crap out of a company that leaves and then tries to send products back is not the answer. Lets simply reduce the tax burden on the company and the employees. Lets reduce the regulation and red tape. Lets incentivize the company to stay and invest locally instead of penalize for leaving. If the government would stay out of the way, businesses would want to invest. I know I would. But right now the amount of upfront costs to the government bureaucracy is prohibitive to get in the market. Which leads me to the IRS.
I spent 45 minutes on the phone today trying to reach someone to change my business address. The website said that I could do one of 4 options. Download and mail a form, send my own letter with some specific information, update when I file my next tax return, or call and have a representative take care of it over the phone.
The download option seemed simple enough. Download, fill out, send. I am out of town for a few weeks and it would be simple enough, but I cannot get to it. Same goes for sending my own letter. I could wait till tax season, but I get regular mail from the IRS so this is too long to not get the information. Calling works perfect. Except, there is no phone number listed. So I search and find a dozen IRS numbers. I finally narrow it down to a business customer service number. I call. Automated message: Press or say 1 for English. Don't get me started. How about assuming English and only make me tell you otherwise? Next I get a list of business related services, but none of what I need. I don't have questions about my EIN, I don't have questions about employer taxes, I don't need to order IRS forms or publications, I don't need to know about Obama care, I don't need to know about how to file form 0394909023445902-B. I need to change my business address. There is no option to even get to a person. Dial 0 and it says "sorry you are having trouble, please call again later," and it hangs up on me.
Repeat process. Okay, I need and EIN. I go through three more prompts to hear, "EINs are issued through our online portal. Go to www........... for more information. Good bye," and Click. I am hung up on again. Now I try to call for tax filing information. "We are sorry, but we are experiencing very high call volume for the issue you are calling about. Please try your call again tomorrow." Click. Are you kidding me? Finally, I want business publications. I don't really, but that is what I tell the machine. I get hold music. For once this is an improvement. After a brief hold (5min.) I get to a woman who is actually pleasant. However, she can only get me the form for change of address. It will take 10 business days to get the form, then I will have to fill it out and send it back. Again, I can do this, I just don't want to use this method. She tells me to call the customer service number so I can talk to someone. She tells me that she cannot do it because she can only take orders for publications, and I need to talk to some one in the correct department.
As I am writing down the number she is giving me, I realize that it is the number I called every time I have been hung up on. It is the number I used to talk to her. So at this point I tell her I will download the form and send it back in a couple weeks. However, I have one question about filling it out. There is a section that I don't think applies, so how do I handle it? Leave it blank? She informs me that she cannot advise me on how to fill out any form and that I will have to figure it out for myself. Well, isn't that grand.
Tell me why it is that we still fund this organization? Implement a national sales tax and eliminate all other income taxes and we can save 95% of what we are spending on the IRS. In fact, we can eliminate the IRS. Imagine the saved revenue to the people and increase the revenue to the government for important things like Military and the VA.
ARRRGH. It is time to get rid of income taxes and the IRS! Let people keep their funds and only be taxed if they buy something. More on that next time.
God Bless,
Geoff
Tuesday, October 4, 2016
Master Debaters
So I watched the first Presidential debate with my eldest son. In the first 15 minutes, he asked if the moderator was voting for Hillary. Although it was rather boring, I'm glad I watched. The debate confirmed what I already knew. I don't like either candidate. Neither candidate is qualified to lead our great country. All in all, there was little if any value to me as a voter, and I certainly didn't see anything that made me feel that real freedom is going to be defended by either leading candidate.
For the VP debate this evening, Mr. Kaine was a great politician. He deflected well and failed to provide any direct answer to the initial question. Pence was a calculated politician as well but was definitely more calm in his demeanor. Both VP candidates appeared to be grounded in data and facts, but Mr. Kaine seemed much more fired up and irritated by the discussion that Pence led on several occasions. However, when Mr. Kaine spoke and tried to defend their "jobs" plan, there he offered typical generic government double talk. Anyone with any sense about business knows that the government cannot create jobs, even if it could, there is nothing in the constitution that permits the government to act. All government can do is provide an environment to encourage entrepreneurship. With tax cuts, the people will have funds to spend on staff and other jobs. I am a business owner. If I didn't pay as much in taxes, I could hire more staff. I would rather give the funds that are taken from my business as taxes and use them to provide more income to staff. But I digress.
Back to the debates. What is the purpose of these debates? When there are three people talking, no one can even hear what is going on. At least after the first half hour the moderator realized this and suggested that they let the other person talk. Obviously there is bias by the moderators. Regardless of which opinion you have of each moderator, I think a better idea might be to acknowledge the bias and let the talking heads that clearly are in the tank for either candidate moderate. For example, why not let Sean Hannity of Fox News (who is clearly in favor of Trump) and Rachael Maddow, (an open Hillary supporter) lead a debate. (this was not my original idea) Cut microphones and have clear times where only one person can speak. (this part is my original idea).
Can I just say that I think the debates have little to do with anything that matters and only has become a series of low impact train wrecks. The best use of the debates is to give fodder to the late night comedy shows and SNL. Shouldn't our political system be educational and useful? Is anyone actually swayed by the debates? I am sure they are, and I think we need debates. In this cycle, the people clearly know that neither candidate is a good choice for the country. Unfortunately, the debates in 2016 are an opportunity for candidates and their VP picks to try to show that the other candidate has more dirty laundry than themselves. No one I know is picking Trump or Clinton for the merits of their candidacy. Only because the fear of what will happen if the other candidate is elected.
I live in Ohio, where anyone who follows politics knows that Ohio is the political capital of the US during election cycles. I have never seen so few yard signs. The few that do exist are for local candidates. In a way, I am happy about that. In another, I am disappointed with the fact that in political Ohio, no one wants to vote "For" someone. It is almost unfortunate that I cannot simply put an "X" beside the candidates I don't want. I will be voting, and I have to vote for someone. But I don't want to vote "for" anyone who has a chance of winning this election. I know this happens for people in every election, but if you believe the polls, you know what I am saying is correct. This time around, no one wants either choice. No debate will change this.
For the VP debate this evening, Mr. Kaine was a great politician. He deflected well and failed to provide any direct answer to the initial question. Pence was a calculated politician as well but was definitely more calm in his demeanor. Both VP candidates appeared to be grounded in data and facts, but Mr. Kaine seemed much more fired up and irritated by the discussion that Pence led on several occasions. However, when Mr. Kaine spoke and tried to defend their "jobs" plan, there he offered typical generic government double talk. Anyone with any sense about business knows that the government cannot create jobs, even if it could, there is nothing in the constitution that permits the government to act. All government can do is provide an environment to encourage entrepreneurship. With tax cuts, the people will have funds to spend on staff and other jobs. I am a business owner. If I didn't pay as much in taxes, I could hire more staff. I would rather give the funds that are taken from my business as taxes and use them to provide more income to staff. But I digress.
Back to the debates. What is the purpose of these debates? When there are three people talking, no one can even hear what is going on. At least after the first half hour the moderator realized this and suggested that they let the other person talk. Obviously there is bias by the moderators. Regardless of which opinion you have of each moderator, I think a better idea might be to acknowledge the bias and let the talking heads that clearly are in the tank for either candidate moderate. For example, why not let Sean Hannity of Fox News (who is clearly in favor of Trump) and Rachael Maddow, (an open Hillary supporter) lead a debate. (this was not my original idea) Cut microphones and have clear times where only one person can speak. (this part is my original idea).
Can I just say that I think the debates have little to do with anything that matters and only has become a series of low impact train wrecks. The best use of the debates is to give fodder to the late night comedy shows and SNL. Shouldn't our political system be educational and useful? Is anyone actually swayed by the debates? I am sure they are, and I think we need debates. In this cycle, the people clearly know that neither candidate is a good choice for the country. Unfortunately, the debates in 2016 are an opportunity for candidates and their VP picks to try to show that the other candidate has more dirty laundry than themselves. No one I know is picking Trump or Clinton for the merits of their candidacy. Only because the fear of what will happen if the other candidate is elected.
I live in Ohio, where anyone who follows politics knows that Ohio is the political capital of the US during election cycles. I have never seen so few yard signs. The few that do exist are for local candidates. In a way, I am happy about that. In another, I am disappointed with the fact that in political Ohio, no one wants to vote "For" someone. It is almost unfortunate that I cannot simply put an "X" beside the candidates I don't want. I will be voting, and I have to vote for someone. But I don't want to vote "for" anyone who has a chance of winning this election. I know this happens for people in every election, but if you believe the polls, you know what I am saying is correct. This time around, no one wants either choice. No debate will change this.
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