POLITICAL ADVERTISEMENTS ARE A WASTE OF MONEY

Experts in psychology say that it is virtually impossible to change someone’s mind with an argument. Researchers have proven, over and over again, that misinformed people do not change their minds even when presented with the correct, proven facts. In fact they become more strongly set in their beliefs. Sometimes the things we think we know are objectively false but in the presence of correct information, we do not change our mind. We just become more entrenched in our original belief. It is threatening to admit we were wrong. We have beliefs and a “set of facts” embedded in our mind and by golly we are not going to change our minds!

That being the case, why do politicians spend billions of dollars on advertising to change our minds? It is a huge waste of money. It would be better to force politicians to pay this money into a national fund that is used to teach our citizens how to think. We would be much better off if we had more citizens who knew how to develop the ability to think. Too many people have unjustified intolerances, hidden fears, and implicit contradictions, all thrown together into a jumble of mixed up philosophy. Education can help people to ask the important questions such as, “what is right and what is wrong?” We need more citizens who know how to become well informed!

THE MOST INTELLIGENT JEW IN AMERICA (IMO)

His name is Norman Podhoretz. He served as editor-in-chief of Commentary magazine for 30 years. He has written twelve books, including My Love Affair With America. He says that the Republicans constitute the party of liberty and the Democrats have become the party of redistribution. In his opinion, the Democrats assume that the gap between rich and poor amounts to a violation of social justice. But this assumption rules out the role of talent, character, ambition, initiative, daring, and work in producing unequal outcomes in the “pursuit of happiness”.

Podhoretz says that what liberals see when they look at America is injustice and oppression crying out for redress. By sharp contrast, conservatives see a complex tradition of principles that animated the American Revolution and have made it possible for more freedom and more prosperity to be enjoyed by more citizens than in any other society in human history. I could not agree more. We are a republic, not a democracy.  And we do not want to become a socialist or communist country. For gosh sakes, please vote Republican. At this time in our history, I believe it is crucial for the future of our country!

MY MARRIAGE IS MORE STABLE THAN OUR GOVERNMENT

Yesterday, my wife and I celebrated our 46^th wedding anniversary. I remember the day like it was yesterday. It was a cold, rainy, blustery day and I was extremely nervous. There were 500 people at St. John’s Lutheran Church and Pastor Dobberfuhl performed a beautiful traditional wedding service. Things were different back then. The Beatles song, “We can work it out” was number 1 on the hit parade and the price of gas was only 32 cents.

The thing that sticks in my mind is that the U. S. Government deficit in 1966 was only $3.7 billion. When put into today’s inflation adjusted dollars, that is $26.24 billion, which is less than 3% of this year’s $1.089 trillion deficit. The Democratic administration’s reckless spending has pushed the national debt to $16 trillion! Four years in a row we have had deficits that exceed $1 trillion. We talk about the fiscal cliff but the current administration has done nothing to stop our rush towards disaster. It is time for a change in leaders. We must stop the government from borrowing a trillion dollars every year to pay for its budget. The longer we wait to balance the budget, the more painful it will be.

HOME ON THE LAKE IN OCTOBER

Bright sunlight highlights a lone white seagull as it flies between blue sky and blue water. Geese are hidden but their honking lets you know they are there. The docks, boats and lifts have been removed from the scene and quietness fills the air. Purple martins are long gone but the last rose of summer is still here. Autumn leafs surround the lake with accents of color and are starting to fall. The first frost of the season has arrived but my tropical plants have been moved into the safety of our sun porch.

The season is perfect for long walks in the country and pot roast dinners. Applesauce is simmering on the stove and has a sweet fragrance. Sunsets are spectacular but now I prefer to watch them from in front of the fireplace. Some hot mulled cider tastes pretty good. All and all, it is a lovely time of year. Oh give me a home where the ducks roam, and the fish and the turtles play. Where seldom is heard a discouraging word and I am happy all the live long day.

My worry is the unbalanced budget of our government and our increasing national debt. These two serious problems should be a concern for all of our citizens. The best way of attacking these problems is to vote republican. It is not a perfect solution but it is our best shot at making the pendulum swing back towards fiscal responsibility. Democrats want to take care of the poor and give benefits, such as universal health care, but they want to do these things with borrowed money and the redistribution of wealth. Republicans want to protect us from outside enemies, provide opportunities to prosper, and give us freedom from government control. Neither platform is perfect but the Democrats platform is a recipe for disaster such as they have in Ireland, Greece and Spain. The Republican platform is a step in the direction of past success. As a nation, we cannot continue to spend money we do not have. 

HAVE YOU EVER HAD AN ORIGINAL THOUGHT?

I doubt it. Mankind has been in existence for thousands of years but most of that time has been spent trying to exist one more day. Humans have now evolved to the point where they no longer have to spend all their time and energy trying to continue their existence. Life is still difficult but we have reached a point where it no longer requires 100% of our efforts to survive. Now, we have time and intellect to think about life. Thus, philosophy, religion, and systems of government and cooperation have come into existence. We are not sure why we are here but we all have ideas and opinions about how life should be organized and lived. Unfortunately, there is not much agreement on these esoteric ideas.

 There is no consensus about how we should live or how we should be organized in order to increase prosperity and improve the quality of our lives. It seems that every imaginable way of cooperating and living together has been thought of and explored. However, nothing has been thought of that we can all agree upon. Is there a new, unexplored way that we can all agree on? I doubt it. Consequently, we will continue to search and fight. It is too bad that human nature does not seem to allow us to live in peace. The good news is that even with our disagreements, by most standards, life continues to improve. More people are living longer and better than in the past. I guess progress, like life, is not easy. Check out this excellent idea from my hero: http://www.creators.com/opinion/thomas-sowell/cheap-politicians.html