super fixer upper cartoon

It will take many villages

Ed Taylor | Glendale

Election 2008: so many idiots, so few villages.

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Our liberty at stake

Ed Konecnik | Flushing, New York

I congratulate President-elect Obama on his historic election. Some of his ideas and pronouncements, however, remain a source of concern.

His statements regarding the Constitution and his desire to “redistribute the wealth” reflect a radical “change” how most Americans perceive the role of government. He believes the Constitution is flawed and states, “The Constitution is a charter of negative liberties – it says what the government can’t do to you, but doesn’t say what the Federal government or State government must do on your behalf.” He seems oblivious to the purpose of the Constitution, which is to limit the power of government over individuals i.e. the Bill of Rights. What it does do on our behalf is provide the framework and protection for “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” It does not guarantee happiness nor does it provide for reimbursements.
The concept of “redistribution of wealth” assumes that the wealth of the citizens belongs to the government. Is the IRS, which confiscates our wealth for the government, going to be renamed the “Internal Redistribution Service?”

In July 2007 at a conference of Planned Parenthood, Senator Obama stated, "We need somebody who's got the heart, the empathy, to recognize what it's like to be a young teenage mom; the empathy to understand what it's like to be poor, or African-American, or gay, or disabled, or old. And that's the criteria by which I'm going to be selecting my judges.” He wants to change the traditional view of justice as a blindfolded person weighing legal claims fairly on a scale. He wants to tear the blindfold off so judges can rule for the party they empathize with the most. This emphasis on empathy in essence requires the appointed judges to violate their oath: that is to "administer justice without respect to persons, and do equal right to the poor and to the rich."

President-elect Obama will take an oath to “preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution.” Let us be vigilant and make sure he does not violate that oath. Nothing less than the very idea of liberty and the rule of law are at stake.

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Capitalistic-x-pealadocious

Tim Slavin | Cave Creek

In response to your "Vote NO on Socialism Keep Our Capitalistic Republic Intact" headline this week:

"On behalf of Mary Poppins, wage slaves, the elderly, and the poor, I have a modest tax proposal.

Let's create a new tax category where people pay zero taxes. They can live in a pure capitalistic state. However, they cannot use anyone or any service funded by taxpayers.
Need food from Safeway? Build your own car (Detroit is heavily subsidized, their workers are educated in subsidized schools, their technology is subsidized), drill and refine your gas, and pave your own road (roads, equipment, and workers education are subsidized).

Want a baby? Find a doctor not educated in a subsidized school using subsidized research. Ditto if you get the flu. Pray you don't need surgery in a hospital.

Want to check the Drudge Report and the RNC for your political marching orders? No can do. The Internet would not exist without taxpayer investment. Same for the postal service.
Someone suing you? Consider a duel. Courts are fully subsidized. Someone robbed you?

Good luck making your weapons. And don't bother calling police. Or the fire department.
Let true capitalists opt out of our socialist nirvana. I'll gladly pay taxes then work to make government transparent and accountable. I'll gladly support the elderly, students, and poor and middle class families who need help. It's the Christian thing to do. It's also sensible: tomorrow someone I know may need help. The cost to me, spread over millions of taxpayers, is far less than doing nothing.

I also insist businesses pay a reasonable share of taxes. It's return on investment for my taxes spent for roads, schools, courts, police, and other services that make wealth possible. Nothing more or less than what private investors expect from businesses they invest in.

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Begin to rebuild the base and advance conservative values

Mathew Staver | Orlando, Florida
Founder of Liberty Counsel and Dean of Liberty University School of Law Liberty Counsel (www.LC.org)


We have just witnessed an historic election. America elected the first black president in her history. The enormity of this event cannot be overestimated. The majority of Americans looked beyond race to elect Barack Obama. They also looked beyond the content of his character and his left-wing agenda, because they were fed up with the current leadership and preferred change over substance.

Prior to the 1980 election, the late Dr. Jerry Falwell said, “The people haven't gone bad. Leadership has.” The people are still good. The leadership must change. Conservatives have not governed well and have forsaken conservative values. Pastors have not communicated well. While their ancestors provided the fuel for the American Revolution, they have developed laryngitis. Conservative ideas resonate with most Americans. It is time for our leaders and pastors to speak clearly.

While the people passed marriage amendments in Arizona, California and Florida, two of those states voted for Barack Obama. When asked to vote on values, they chose traditional marriage. In California, the people overturned an activist state supreme court. However, a large number of people who voted for Obama voted for these marriage amendments, which Obama opposed.

Obama is left of left. He supports the Freedom of Choice Act, which would overturn almost every abortion restriction in the Nation. He opposes the Born Alive Infant Protection Act, which was passed by Congress. He opposes a law banning partial-birth abortion, which was upheld by the Supreme Court. He promised to repeal the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which was passed overwhelmingly by Congress and signed by President Bill Clinton. The majority of Americans do not support Obama's left wing radical agenda, but they wanted change for the sake of change.

The people voted to make history and voted against corrupt and impotent leadership. The majority of the American people share conservative values and are center or right of center. Conservative leaders have failed to remain true to these core values, and the people punished them. Today, we begin to rebuild the base. Old leadership must be replaced by new leadership. The values remain the same. The leadership must change.

Over the next four years the people will work to hold back Obama's liberal social and economic agenda from advancing too far. In the end, he will find his liberal agenda to be a lonely island. In the end, President Obama will have to represent the values of the American people.

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A nation of "Useful Idiots"

Name withheld by request

Vladimir Lenin coined the term "Useful Idiots" to describe people easily duped and manipulated for political ends. Well, it seems that more than half of our voters drank Obama's Kool-Aid and are now the "useful idiots" of the far left. If you own anything, or ever hope to own anything, rest assured that Obama, Pelosi and Reid have their eye on it and will, if possible, take it away from you.

And let's remember who they plan to give your money to: The very least productive segment of the American population. So, they plan to subsidize sloth and punish industry. How American does that sound to you? I'd guess that many of our forefathers would retch at the concept.

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Thanks

Holly Buss | Cave Creek

Thank you for printing my letter to the editor, "AZ Tuition Tax Credit." If you have any readers who are interested in learning more about this, I could give them more information. My number is (480) 585-3802.

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Don Sorchych article

Catherine Carter | Scottsdale

Thank you for the recent article in “My View.” The conservative view is most appreciated, and rarely spoken. All your points were factual, non inflammatory, and clearly communicated. I pray for our country every day.

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Gun Control


Rob Larson | Via e-mail


I will apologize now if some of you are offended at this letter.

In the wake of the recent election, I feel that now more than ever we will have to do all we can to safe guard our personal freedoms.

A little gun history lesson:
• In 1929, the Soviet Union established gun control. From 1929 to 1953, about 20 million dissidents, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
• In 1911, Turkey established gun control. From 1915 to 1917, 1.5 million Armenians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
• Germany established gun control in 1938 and from 1939 to 1945, a total of 13 million Jews and others who were unable to defend themselves were rounded up and exterminated
• China established gun control in 1935. From 1948 to 1952, 20 million political dissidents, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
• Guatemala established gun control in 1964. From 1964 to 1981, 100,000 Mayan Indians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
• Uganda established gun control in 1970. From 1971 to 1979, 300,000 Christians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
• Cambodia established gun control in 1956. From 1975 to 1977, one million 'educated' people, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
• Defenseless people rounded up and exterminated in the 20th Century because of gun control: 56 million.
• It has now been 12 months since gun owners in Australia were forced by new law to surrender 640,381 personal firearms to be destroyed by their own government, a program costing Australia taxpayers more than $500 million dollars. The first year results are now in:
• Australia-wide, homicides are up 3.2 percent
• Australia-wide, assaults are up 8.6 percent
• Australia-wide, armed robberies are up 44 percent (yes, 44 percent)!

In the state of Victoria alone, homicides with firearms are now up 300 percent. Note that while the law-abiding citizens turned them in, the criminals did not, and criminals still possess their guns!

It will never happen here? I bet the Aussies said that too!

While figures over the previous 25 years showed a steady decrease in armed robbery with firearms, this has changed drastically upward in the past 12 months, since criminals now are guaranteed that their prey is unarmed.

There has also been a dramatic increase in break-ins and assaults of the ELDERLY.

Australian politicians are at a loss to explain how public safety has decreased, after such monumental effort and expense was expended in successfully ridding Australian society of guns. The Australian experience and the other historical facts above prove it.

You won't see this data on the U.S. evening news, or hear politicians disseminating this information.

Guns in the hands of honest citizens save lives and property and, yes, gun-control laws adversely affect only the law-abiding citizens.

Take note my fellow Americans, before it's too late!

The next time someone talks in favor of gun control, please remind him of this history lesson.

With guns … we are ‘citizens’. Without them … we are ‘subjects’.

During W.W.II the Japanese decided not to invade America because they knew most Americans were ARMED!

Note: Admiral Yamamoto who crafted the attack on Pearl Harbor had attended Harvard U 1919-1921 and was Naval Attaché to the U. S. 1925-28. Most of our Navy was destroyed at Pearl Harbor and our Army had been deprived of funding and was ill prepared to defend the country.

It was reported that when asked why Japan did not follow up the Pearl Harbor attack with an invasion of the U. S. Mainland, his reply was that he had lived in the U. S. and knew that almost all households had guns.

If you value your freedom, please spread this anti-gun control message to all your friends!

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Greetings from Galveston County, Texas

Bruce McNeil, AIC | Kemah, Texas

Yes I am still here working hurricane Ike claims. Damage is quite bad and the media is quite silent on the extent of it. I have not yet seen Galveston Island, the pictures on CNN are better than what I could show from the ground. Searchers found yet another body in one of the hundreds of debris piles here, last Sunday, Nov 2.

I am living in an RV park in Kemah, Texas. Working out of my RV. Kemah is about the same size as Cave Creek, it’s just on or next to Galveston Bay. Creekers have horses, Harleys and open land, while Kemah has G Bay and the Gulf.

I am lucky, my RV is not a flooded vehicle or home like everyone else here. Check out www.kemah.net – there are pictures of the tidal surge that came the DAY BEFORE the hurricane hit. Very much like Katrina. Wind vs. water … baaaaaaahhhhhh. The surge comes well before the wind.

Yes I am homesick but my mortgage payment is an effortless payment and my home equity line is getting paid down too.

Houston – There is no recession here! In fact there is a HUGE shortage of trades people. And a shortage of housing and subdivision projects are everywhere!

The real estate figures that came in late October state the following: Median house prices have remained stable throughout 2007 and into 2008. They have NOT come down! Do I need to repeat that sentence? But it is tougher to get a loan.

Bumper stickers:
“How can 63 million Americans be that @#%&*!! stupid?” or I look forward to calling my CPA next year and asking him, “at what income point do I stop working for the year?”

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Shame on the Cave Creek voters

Steven Becht | Cave Creek

Are the Cave Creek voters frugal, selfish or ignorant? While almost every other school district had budgets passed on Election Day, the Cave Creek residents again decided not to invest in their children and their schools. Three intellectual studies, one performed by G. Donald Jud and James M. Watts in Charlotte, N.C. in 1981, one by William T. Bogart and Brian A. Cromwell in Cleveland in 1997, and one by Sandra E. Black in Boston in 1999 all concluded the same thing. After controlling for outside factors, they not only found that homes in good districts sell for more money, they found "that high-quality school districts provide services valued in excess of the higher taxes that they levy." These studies and others show that, while the stock market waxes and wanes, investing in public education is one of the soundest investments a community can make. Increasing student achievement is like putting money in the bank. What the residents of Cave Creek are repeatedly indicating is that they would prefer to remain isolated, to own a worthless acre of blowing dust, than to make the investment in their schools that would enhance their community and increase the values of their properties.

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