H.R. 2454 CONTINUED

It certainly was a long weekend since the slam dunk vote by the House on Friday with 8 Republican being the spoilers of our Republic. I gave this time to not only collect my thoughts on this but to also find out as much about why this bill passed so quickly.

I am not an expert of how the House and Senate go through their proceedings so I really do not understand how something comes out of Committee, add 300 hundred pages at 3 am, forced on to the floor to be voted leaving no time for the Congressmen to even review the bill. Several Congressmen requested the bill from the House Speaker and were refused right on the House floor. Why and how could anyone put up with this? Then there were reports that the bill was not finalized until 2 July at which point votes could be changed but somehow that was changed.

There is more here to this bill then it's title, American Clean Energy and Security Act. Here are some of what others are saying about this bill.
"The Cap and Trade Bill HR 2454 was voted on last Friday. Proponents claim this bill will help the environment, but what it really does is put another nail in the economy’s coffin. The idea is to establish a national level of carbon dioxide emissions, and sell pollution permits to industry as the Catholic Church used to sell indulgences to sinners. HR 2454 also gives federal bureaucrats new power to regulate a wide variety of household appliances, such as light bulbs and refrigerators, and further distorts the market by providing more of your tax money to auto companies." Ron Paul
"Despite heated objections by some Republicans, the unread 1,200-page Waxman-Markey climate bill was passed 219-212 in the House on Friday." Aaron Dykes
"“We’re disappointed we can’t support the bill,” says Nick Berning, a spokesman for Friends of the Earth. “There just was not enough in it to reduce pollution while billions were given to big oil, dirty coal.”





This misnomer bill is not only going to impose more taxes for Americans, it promises rebates for the poorer Americans and that is all that is being said. But if you look at the actual figures you will see a rebate of less then $300 yet the bill promises to increase energy cost by about $3000 per family. It blows my mind to think that anyone with any sort of understanding of math would see that increasing cost per American of $3000 a year, creating a situation where people will lose their jobs and then giving them a 10% back as a rebate is not helping anyone.

My biggest problem is the fact that the States are going to have to give up more and more power to the Fed in order to put this bill in place. Between the regulations on remodeling we will have new requirements for new houses and buildings that will increase the cost of building. That on top of what I am calling the Green Police and their warrantless inspections of our homes to make sure that we doing what the Governments requires from us we are being usurped by the Fed. THIS IS NOT FREEDOM, THIS IS RUSSIA ON STEROIDS. States and local governments are going to be told what to do by the Government which is the absolute opposite of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. We have sovereignty, the right to govern ourselves and not to have our lives micromanaged by the Federal government.

With this bill and then the National Health Care, we as the people are going to loose more and more power to be able to run this country. As an aside, I read an article about the 17th Amendment from 1913, which was the same year that the Amendment for income tax was put in place. Back in the day, our Senators were voted in to place by the States government. The voices of our States government put our Federal Senators in to power. This was switched by the 17th Amendment where the Senators were voted in by the populace of the State meaning that the populace had more control but the government of the State had less. This knocked out the balance of power in the Legislative body of the government by taking away the States voices as well. The House was set up to be the most powerful arm of the Legislative branch. The House is more of the voice of the American people because there are more reps based on population. Since the 17th Amendment, you can trace back to the now quick demise of the country. With the way it was, when we had a situation like we have now with HR 2454, the States would have a real voice in the vote of the Senate when this type of bill is turned over to them for a vote. States are the real power of this country, hence, United States of America. These are the States united, each having a voice in the Federal government in order to keep a balance there with their reps. With this gone and the Senate is more of a rogue branch now, working almost as the House does which takes away a checks and balance in this branch. The only good thing is that I read an article that said that this bill will have a hard time making it through the Senate...lets hope! Sphere: Related Content

H.R.2454

I find myself spending a bit too much time on the Global Warming, Climate Change situation that we have going on right now. The reason behind this is simple from day one, 20 years ago, I thought that this was some sort of scam. How arrogant was our scientific community to say that our planet is warming up like never before because there are holes in the Ozone. That on top of the fact that 7 years ago I was being told as a kid that we were going in to a new Ice Age. Well that was 20 years ago, now were are putting too much carbon in the atmosphere and increasing the temperature of the planet and ice caps are melting and the water level will rise and flood NYC in 100 years. Yet the facts are that the temperature is going down and that is because the sun is not as hot as it was 2 years ago.
Well the ball has dropped and the real reason for the scare has come to light. HR 2454 Americas Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 is the solution. Behind the fluff you will find an increase of taxes, plain and simple.
Here is the record of a speech made on the floor against H.R.2454 on 23 June 2009:

Rep. Jerry Moran [R-KS1]: From its very beginning in the House Energy and Commerce Committee, H.R. 2454, the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009, has been forced upon Members of Congress with little time to consider the significant and potentially damaging consequences of this legislation.

On June 12th of this month, the Committee on Agriculture, on which I serve, held a 7-hour hearing to review this bill. We quickly learned that there is little solid economic analysis on how this legislation will affect our economy. Preliminary evidence makes it clear it will increase the cost of energy and, with it, the cost of everything we use in our lives on a daily basis.

We do know that the Congressional Budget Office has said this bill will raise government revenue by $846 billion over the next 10 years. In everyday terms, that means a huge tax increase. $846 billion, however, is just the beginning.

H.R. 2454 is permanent, and after the 10-year period analyzed by the CBO, free carbon allowances are phased out, auctioned carbon allowances are phased in, and total allowances are reduced. This means that future generations will be forced to pay much more than that indicated in the initial 10-year budget estimate.

Although billed as cap-and-trade, in reality Waxman-Markey is a cap-and-tax bill. Instead of government directly levying a tax, this legislation disguises that tax as a carbon allowance auction that subsequently requires electrical generation companies, petroleum, and other biofuel refiners, manufacturers, and others to collect the tax through increased costs.

The consequences go far beyond the price and our ability to turn on the lights in rural America. Kansans, who must always travel great distances to work, to school, and to receive their medical care, will pay disproportionately compared to those who have shorter distances to travel and can use public transportation.

Some had hope that agriculture and rural America would actually benefit, somehow be made whole under this legislation. Under Waxman-Markey, this clearly is not the case.

Despite great potential for agriculture to sequester carbon, agriculture is not mentioned once in the section that defines offsets. Instead, H.R. 2454 directs the EPA to define the world of carbon offsets. This will lead to few benefits for farmers and ranchers and will allow the EPA to further intrude upon our farms.

EPA has consistently made harmful decisions that fail the test of common sense. Unless agricultural offsets are expressly defined and sole authority is given to the Department of Agriculture, farmers will never see benefits from this legislation.

But even if those offsets are defined and USDA is given that authority, it is difficult to see how agriculture will overcome the increased cost of inputs caused by this cap-and-tax system. In the best case scenario under Waxman-Markey, a farmer could mitigate 10 to 50 percent of the cost of the legislation. In the worst case scenario, farmers and ranchers could find themselves unable to access the carbon offset market at all and be forced to bear the full cost of this legislation. Either way, any hope for profitability in agriculture is bleak.

I am especially concerned about the livestock sector. Unlike crop farmers, ranch operations and feed yards have few opportunities to accumulate carbon - offsets.

Much emphasis has been placed upon our Nation's economic recovery since the market collapse of last fall. This bill is almost certain to destroy any chance of economic recovery if enacted in its current form.

Congress should be allowed to obtain sound technical and economic analysis and address this legislation's many, many, many flaws. If further legislative debate is denied, then we must do what common sense demands and defeat this bill. Congress rarely gets things right when we have ample time to properly consider policy changes, but it has never made good decisions when rushed by arbitrary timetables.

Congress should abandon the current pace set by the Speaker of the House. Otherwise, Members of Congress will have abdicated their responsibilities and farmers and ranchers, rural America, and in fact, the entire country will suffer the consequences.

Please contact your Congressman and Senators and tell them "no" to this bill. Your voice is actually very important to them and they need to hear from you, it is your responsibility as an American Citizen! Sphere: Related Content

Banks Funding Climate Change

I was walking out of Penn Station yesterday heading up town to go to work yesterday. I crossed over 7th Ave heading to 33rd St and I see this great new bulletin board. I pulled out my phone and took this picture.
This is a bulletin board that is that is going to count the amount of Carbon Dioxide being pumped in to the atmosphere. The title says, "CLIMATE CHANGE AFFECTS EVERYONE" then there is a counter below, which is not running yet and then below that it says, "Greenhouse Gases In Our Atmosphere".
In the upper right hand corner is sponsor of this bulletin board is Deutshe Bank. The bulletin board is right over a Capital One bank and Bank of America. The irony here is that right around the corner just above the LIRR entrance was the marque that had an up-to-date count of the federal debt which was shut off about a year ago. I don't think the marque was large enough to handle the amount of the debit.
I guess we can agree that the banks are supporting the Climate Change movement. You think they are looking forward to the Carbon Tax money? Sphere: Related Content

Sweet Land Of Liberty

For the record, I want to state that I am not writing this blog in order to take a stance politically. I don't support Obama nor did I support Bush. I don't see taking a side or attacking either side directly is really going prove or improve anything.

The basis of this country, our constitution, and the idea of a government based on the ideals of freedom of all man and the pursuit of that freedom is what I believe in. The point that is not really understood by most Americans is that we have complete and total freedom to live our lives as we see fit unless we violate the freedom of others. Our government is based on the people, not on popular opinion. We are a Republic not a Democracy. We are in charge, plain and simple.

We have the right to voice our opinion, we have the right to establish a militia and the police do not have the right to impose on our freedom through a police state. Plain and simple...right? No! Over the last 85 years or so our freedoms have been slowly and insidiously taken away from us. It is being done so slowly and methodically that most of us don't even see what is happening even though the proof is in the pudding.

Take free speech zones. The first amendment states, "Congress shall make no law... abridging... the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." Yet a free speech zone is justified with language like this "The stated purpose of free speech zones is to protect the safety of those attending the political gathering, or for the safety of the protesters themselves." Is to protect the safety of those attending the political gathering or the protesters themselves? Is this to imply that there is going to be violence because there is a protest? Does this mean that protesters are all political and violent or violence can ensue because of the mere idea that someone has a different opinion?

How about gun legislation? The second amendment states, "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." If we read this it states that we have the right to bear Arms, please note that Arms is capitalized! Yet there is constant ban on guns, you need to have a permit to own a gun and you need to have a background check in order to purchase a gun. See here is the most obvious way that our freedoms are being removed and regulated. There is not a direct ban on guns, simply a control on guns. No one is going to out right just say that guns are not allowed, just that we are going to regulate who owns guns or what kind of guns can be purchased. This way the government is not coming out and saying the second amendment is being abolished.
My point here, and what I said earlier about people not seeing what is happening, is this: when you control guns or regulate free speech or allow the DOD to just tap our phones without warrants, the constitution is being ignored, it is that simple.
I know that this sounds completely and utterly stupid, the fact remains that this is what is happening in our country today. Look at the Brady law, man is protecting the President and is shot by this whack job, John Hinkely Jr, so now we need to make sure that we protect people from getting shot again by whack jobs so we have a 7 day waiting list for someone to get a background check before purchasing a gun so this never happens again. Who controls the information in your background check? No seriously, who controls this information?
9-11 is really the base of all of this. From that the Patriot Act was put in to place by the Bush administration. This act was suppose to protect the American people against another attack yet who is really being protected? Look for your self at this country to see who is really being protected because it is not the American people. Look at our economy, look at the budget of the military, look at the level of rights that have been slowly taken away from us since this was implemented.
But you really need to look at this for yourself. Stop taking what the mass media tells you everyday as simple fact and learn how to read what is being said. Perfect example from the NY Times, headline today, "OBAMA ENLISTED BREAD CONSENSUS OF FINANCE" subhead line, "Fed and F.D.I.C. to Gain Wide Authority Over Ailing Institutions". So what is this saying? The Federal Reserve, a private Central Bank that produces our currency without any regulation from Congress, which per the Constitution states is the responsibility of Congress, is going to be given more control over banks. Banks are a private institution (meaning that they are not owned by the government, technically they are a public company because of the fact of shareholders)they are owned by shareholders and run by a Board. They are regulated by the government only to not completely rip off the public. The idea here is that we put our money in to the bank and use this bank to pay our bills, save our money and pay us interest. Our money is suppose to be safe from the failure of the bank hence the F.D.I.C. Some of us borrow money from the bank to purchase something or expand our business. Simple, right? Well these days, thanks to the removal of certain regulations, banks can now invest our money in to the stock and bond market, putting our money at risk. They can also lend out more money than they have. In other words, they used to be able to lend out at the rate of 12 to 1. Meaning that they have 1 dollar, they can take and lend out $12. Now a days they can lend out as much as $30 for every $1 that they have. Hence you have the mess that we are in now. Yet it was the Federal Reserve that has allowed this to happen, in fact they encourage the banks to do so and Obama is now asking for more regulatory power to be given to the Federal Reserve. Did you know that the Inspector General of the Federal Reserve told Congress that they could not account for over 1.2 trillion dollars that was lent to banks or spent by the Fed since September 2008. See for yourself!
I can almost 100% guarranty that 85% of Amercians do not know that the Federal Reserve is a private bank that is not regulated by the Congress. Now those of you that pull the Federal Reserve act of 1913 that says that it is suppose to be controlled by Congress hold your breath, if it was regulated by Congress then HR 1207 asking for an audit of the Federal Reserve would not be needed!
My overall point to this whole thing here is this, we need to better educate ourselves as to what is happening in this country. We need to trust just a little less what apprears to be happening around us with the ideal of being done in our best interest, a statement that along rips apart our Constitution. Our best interest is to become involved. Our best interest is to ask "why" when you see headlines like above or you hear about a peaceful protester riding his bike down Broadway in NYC and getting tackled by a police officer for no reason. You need to step up and tell your Congressman or Senator that you disagree with a bill that you heard about at the water cooler. You have a god given AND constitutional right to step up and question our leaders and ask them to be accountable for their mistakes. Stop allowing people to run your life and take some responsibilty for yourself and your fellow Americans and do something! Sphere: Related Content

Gangster Government

Now here is something that I overlooked. How is the government going to handle closing down GM dealerships? I would say you will get a real giggle out of this but it is really scary!!

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