Category: Guest Authors

Successful Pa. Lobby Day

By Whitey Coyne

The Delco Patriots joined Americans for Prosperity ( AFP ) in a successful Lobby Day in Harrisburg on June 4.  A busload of Delco and King of Prussia Tea party members rallied in Harrisburg for a day of speeches, meetings with  local representatives and a powerful explanation of the “Common Core” educational issue by Dr. Peg Luksik. They were joined by patriots from Butler, Berks, Lehigh and Westmoreland counties.

The Common Core initiative is another effort by the federal government to control something that should remain a state and local responsibility.  In education, one size does not fit all and standards should not be reduced to the lowest common denominator. Local teachers and school boards should be the judge of what is appropriate, not federal bureaucrats.

Other issues discussed included “Pension Reform”, “Paycheck Protection” (No coerced union dues), “Prevailing Wage” and tax cuts for Pennsylvania businesses.

Pennsylvania has the second highest corporate tax rate in the United States at 9.99 percent. This high tax added to the federal and local tax burden  discourages employers from locating in Pennsylvania AND encourages PA businesses to locate in other states or overseas.

The Tyranny That Has Become Youth Sports

Another Mother’s Day has passed, and with it the usual activities: Brunch, cookouts, a walk in the park with Mom. And sports games.

No, not a family outing at the Phils, but youth sports: Baseball, lacrosse, field hockey, soccer. You name it, they’re playing it. Do mothers love watching their children play? Sure. But is it really necessary to play on Mother’s Day? Is nothing sacred?

Have we lapsed so far into vicariously living through our children that common sense — and common courtesy — are now nonexistent? Are we so far gone that we can’t even assign a few sports “blackout” dates when family should come first? Sadly, yes.

And while coaches and league commissioners are largely responsible for these warped priorities, the ultimate blame must be placed on parents. As upset as some are that their Mother’s Day, Independence Day and Memorial Day holidays are blown to accommodate sports schedules, most refuse to say “no.” Instead, they go along with the insanity, which only serves as an enabler, ensuring that things will get worse.

And they have. Much worse.

Playing sports is wonderful for children, but it can be carried too far, such as parents who permit their child to play three and four sports per season. Not only does this rip apart families, but it deprives children of the one thing they need, and want, the most: Just being a child. As important as organized sports are, it is even more valuable to play Wiffle ball, capture the flag, cards, and cops and robbers — though they better do that last one quickly, before it’s outlawed, but that another story.

Worse than the hyper-schedules is the inexcusable behavior of some coaches and parents, and the politically correct social-engineering that is ever more prevalent in youth sports. Consider:

Extreme Coaching: Recently, I was witness to a rotund, loud-mouthed head baseball coach chewing out a player so intensely, 3 inches from his face, that the berating could be heard three towns over. That humiliating barrage didn’t teach the player anything, since he was in tears and only 7. But the show had just begun. The coach then proceeded to publicly scream at his “third base coach” (aka volunteer parent) for not sending a runner home. To his credit, that guy exercised self-control, choosing not to knock out fatboy’s teeth.

Then there are those who play “Daddy” and “Mommy” ball, becoming coaches just to ensure their child makes the “A” team, starts every game, gets the most playing time and wins the awards. Merit and ability sit the bench while favoritism wins the day, poisoning what should have been a fruitful and fun experience.

While there are still many coaches who do their best to teach fundamentals in a “normal” way, it seems that an increasing number get into coaching not for the children, but themselves. A power trip, they are either reliving their glory days or, more likely, making up for the glory days they never had. To those folks, a piece of advice: Screaming at little children, having a heart attack on the sidelines and otherwise acting like a jackass doesn’t make you a jock. And it’s a horrible example for the children — the only ones who matter.

Extreme parenting: Orthopedic surgeons will tell you that children should never play the same sport for more than three consecutive months, since that invites injury to their still-growing bodies.

Yet, the number of sports-related injuries, such as torn rotator cuffs, is rising substantially. Why? Because too many parents live in la-la land, convinced their child is the next Roy Halladay, Pele or LeBron James. So they sign up their “star” for several leagues (simultaneously), often hire a personal trainer and run their children ragged all year-round. And then have the gall to get angry when an injury sidelines their child.

Additionally, many place immense pressure on their children to win sports scholarships to high school and college. So when 9-year-olds talk about such things, you know it’s gotten out-of-control.

Political correctness: Opposite coaches running up the score just to humiliate an opponent and make themselves feel superior, we have coaches and leagues that immediately jump to “mercy rules,” turning off scoreboards and telling players not to score when an opponent falls behind by several goals.

Talk about confusing young players. Practice diligently, execute on the field, yet do the opposite of all you’ve learned — simply because you were successful? That is the antithesis to what sports are supposed to teach.

There are, of course, ways to be sporting when beating an opponent. Prolific scorers can be placed on defense or in goal (though cutting their playing time, solely because they are good, is wrong). A classy football team will not pass the ball when up big, but it doesn’t give up. And the game doesn’t end prematurely just because of a lopsided score. To do so would be grossly unfair to both teams.

But we have become a society where “everyone gets a trophy.” Individual and team achievements are whitewashed so as not to hurt the feeling of nonchampions. Everyone and everything must be homogenized, a “spread the wealth” mentality whereby awards are doled out not by merit — by who is best — but by who hasn’t won yet. Far be it for a player to win MVP in two sports, as that is deemed “unfair.” There’s a term for mandating equality: Communism. And all along I thought we beat the Soviets.

The end result is a closet full of dusty trophies, statues with absolutely no meaning.

The longer-term effect is more chilling: A dysfunctional generation, expecting everything yet prepared for nothing. When faced by that thing called The Real World, they respond dismally. America cannot fight a war without bowing to political correctness. Business is suffering as jobs are outsourced to those not expecting entitlements. College graduates, expecting six-figure salaries, find themselves adrift, lost because of an inability to cope with life’s challenges after discovering that the “trophy days” are over.

Sports used to teach children priceless lessons to make them successful in life. How to win graciously. How to lose with one’s chin up, a motivation to work harder to achieve victory the next time. The message that reward only comes with effort and that healthy competition makes us better.

Life is a series of wins and losses, of passing and failing. You pass or fail in school, your job, marriage, as a parent. But those lessons are being sidelined and we are losing the game.

Free of political correctness, asinine coaches and “helicopter” parents hovering over their children, sports, in its purest form, is the best teacher. Teamwork, camaraderie, competition, and the incentive to be the best — these are the values America once embraced and they made us the envy of the world.

Somewhere along the way, we have lost that playbook and if we don’t find it soon, starting with youth sports, we will be watching the rest of the world from the penalty box.

 

The Tyranny That Has Become Youth Sports

When Did We Become British?

I have great admiration for our British cousins, so I was sincerely flattered when asked to speak at Oxford University. I of course accepted, and look forward with great anticipation to this fall, when I’ll visit England for the first time.

The seminar will concentrate on higher education and how it is evolving, but I’ll also be interested in doing a little snooping while I’m over there.

I’m going to see if I can find some clues as to why we here in America seem to be reverting to being a part of Britain once again.

Perhaps I’m overreacting, but notice, if you will, that at Wal-Mart stores (at least the ones around south Jersey) you are directed to enter and exit to your left, sort of like driving on the left side of the road as they do in England. But we keep to the right in this country and pass on the left. Don’t we?

I’m starting to notice this tendency in many other places, particularly at Wawa and my local post office, where people increasingly enter and exit using the left side of the double-door. It’s even happening in my church, where the right hand door is often left closed—that is, until I reach the exit. That’s when I go through the right side, which, in this country, is the right side.

I’ve even had (many) people hold the left hand door open for me as I enter a Wawa. Imagine how disappointed they are when I ignore their misguided courtesy and pull the right-hand door open for myself. (Well, somebody’s got to take a stand for American Independence!)

This disturbing, bogus/foreign trend has now reached the entertainment and news media—the two wannabe national style-setters. Movie and television scripts are now peppered with the British police phrases, “He went missing,” or “The child has gone missing.”

As a long-time devotee of British TV, I’m familiar with this syntax. As a long-time American police officer, I can tell you indisputably that that phraseology was never used in Philadelphia.

(Excerpted from Good Writers Block)

No Cheers For Corbett In Alcohol Sting

No Cheers For Corbett In Alcohol Sting

The season has finally arrived!

Memorial Day weekend ushered in the unofficial start of summer when people relax with family and friends, enjoying what little leisure time is left in America.

But Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett made it abundantly clear he wasn’t interested in that season.

For him, it was all about making it Open Season — on Pennsylvanians.

In a move that defies every ounce of common sense for a governor touting the lowest popularity in the nation, Corbett had his state police slip across the border over the weekend to engage in sting operations, targeting Pennsylvanians for the capital crime of buying liquor in Delaware and crossing back into the Keystone State.

And what was the mammoth haul of Tommy’s troopers?

The equivalent of 17 cases of beer, 10 cases of wine, and 15 bottles of liquor.

At least Pennsylvania has no other pressing problems to which its increasingly limited resources should be allocated. Oh, wait. It does. A lot, actually.

That was made readily apparent watching the local news when, immediately after the liquor confiscation story, it was reported that Pennsylvania had the worst, most dangerous bridges in the nation (while Delaware’s were second best).

How can the governor reconcile those things? Despite having historic Republican majorities in both legislative chambers, Corbett has made zero headway fixing our crumbling infrastructure, yet prioritizes undercover operations (which nab three people) buying alcohol in another state. Going out on a limb here, but wouldn’t the substantial resources spent on operations in Delaware be better utilized elsewhere? Like in Pennsylvania?

How much taxpayer money was wasted on logistics, fuel costs, and troopers’ salaries, compared to the miniscule tax Pennsylvania “lost?” The numbers aren’t even in the same ballpark, so what were they doing? Squandering resources just to make a point — whatever that point is?

Try explaining that to the family who loses a loved one to a drunk driver who maybe, just maybe, could have been stopped had the state police been patrolling in-state. Or to those victimized by burglary, assault and numerous other crimes while their police were busy making out-of-state, small-time liquor busts.

On a holiday weekend where there is always an upswing in driving while intoxicated (there were five fatal DUI crashes, according to state police), the governor unleashed his dogs on those simply trying to avoid the whopping 18 percent Johnstown Flood Tax of 1936 (plus the additional sales tax) that Pennsylvania levies on wine and liquor.

Is this his way of strong-arming his liquor privatization plan? A kind of “pass my bill or it’ll be like this until you do” message?

Great, except that his bill wouldn’t keep people from flocking to other states to buy liquor, as Freindly Fire explained in a prior column. No one is a bigger privatization proponent than I, but do it right or not at all. But since neither Corbett’s nor the Legislature’s plan eliminate the Johnstown tax, prices will remain high or, quite likely, further increase, if either proposal passes.

And if Delaware stings aren’t about liquor privatization, then what are they about? And why?

Give Tom Corbett credit for one thing: If he’s trying to attain a single-digit approval rating, he is succeeding better than the Democrats ever dreamed.

Aside from the sheer stupidity of engaging in such an operation, several questions are worth asking:

1. Are Pennsylvania State Police legally permitted to operate in other states? If so, why? A call to the Delaware State Police yielded no information, as two individuals had no knowledge of Pennsylvania’s actions. Which makes sense, since it is not in Delaware’s interest to put a damper on legal Delaware commerce.

2. How is this not a violation on the Interstate Commerce Clause? It should be, but the 21st Amendment has a provision allowing states to regulate alcohol almost any way they want. It should be changed.

3. Since random, empty liquor boxes are used to package alcoholic and non-alcoholic bottles at the checkout counter, do the police have probable cause to search one’s trunk after the border crossing is made? How do the police know that the Grey Goose box doesn’t contain soda and non-alcoholic beer? As long as we’re talking about amendments, the governor and police should read the Fourth one. It’s kind of important.

4. When Corbett’s liquor privatization plan doesn’t pass this month — and it probably won’t — will the number of search and seizures escalate? Bet you a case of Delaware liquor they will.

Corbett continues to rationalize why his Jerry Sandusky investigation took so long. One excuse was that he didn’t have the necessary resources, since as attorney general, he didn’t control the state police — the governor did. Under that rationale, Tom Corbett as governor is, and must be, responsible for all operations of the state police under his command, so the buck stops with him on these heavy-handed liquor stings.

As the backlash grows, it has become yet another reason why next year’s re-election chances looks very sobering for Tom Corbett.

 

No Cheers For Corbett In Alcohol Sting

Totally Nutter Tax Policy

Totally Nutter Tax Policy
By  Chris Freind

I swore I was done.

I promised I would never waste another column writing about how pathetic Philadelphia is. And how its complacent residents and businessmen get exactly what they deserve. Washing my hands of all things Philly, I pledged, most importantly, to never again comment on Michael Nutter, who is, without a doubt, America’s most obtuse, clueless and excruciatingly boring mayor.

But I failed.

It is simply impossible not to rip into Tweedle Dee and his latest efforts to drive the final stake into the heart of a once-great city by trying to impose, yes, more taxes! But this isn’t a column about how astronomical taxes actually decrease revenue and further a city’s demise. Michael Nutter has never, nor will ever, understand that, so why bother?

It’s much more fun to look at the mayor’s “legacy” and marvel about how bad he really is.

♦

In 2011, the end of Nutter’s first term, Philadelphia enjoyed the dubious honor of owning the highest murder rate of any large American city (a feat it has accomplished with stunning regularity) – a staggering 32 percent above second-worst Chicago. But in a move that can only be characterized as deceptive, Nutter continues to compare the murder rate each year to 2007, the high water mark for killings.

So when the police department states that murders in 2012 are “down 15 percent,” a reasonable person would assume that was compared to the prior year. It’s not. In reality, 2012 had more murders than any year since 2007. If a CEO didn’t readily disclose to shareholders that 2012 earnings were being compared to financial numbers from five years prior, he would go to jail. But when you’re Michael Nutter, it’s called Business-As-Usual.

Not content to be first in just one category, Philadelphia under Nutter’s direction is also the champion for highest poverty level. And as a bonus, it also leads in “deep poverty,” which is people living on less than half the poverty-line income level.

Then there’s the violent crime rate, the homeless rate, the illiteracy rate, the unemployment rate, the dropout rate, the graduation rate, and the rate of high schoolers not going to college.

Is there anyone who doesn’t know whether these rates are good – or horrendous? Anyone? Bueller? Nutter? Anyone?

Didn’t think so.

And what is Nutter’s go-to explanation, and the only method he uses to “solve” problems? It’s always a two-parter, and it goes like this:

“Cities are hard-pressed to fight (these problems) by ourselves, and we really need partnerships from the state and federal governments as well.” That was his response to the poverty issue, but it’s the same for everything. Look to the state and feds for bailouts and handouts.

For years, the funding flowed, and while the problems only got worse (no surprise there), Nutter could at least spin the tale that the money would make everything rainbows and lollipops – so long as that spigot was kept open.

Well, the Piper came calling, and taxpayers’ largesse has slowed dramatically. So what’s a beleaguered mayor to do? Show initiative by freeing up private enterprise so that it can grow and add jobs? Employ creativity in the way our children – our future – are educated? Demonstrate leadership by making the city operate efficiently and within its means – the same as hardworking families and well-run companies?

Of course not. Because doing so would require courage and a brain. The Wizard of Oz, Michael Nutter is not.

So, like all politicians who never held private sector jobs, Nutter has once again gone to the only playbook he knows: tax, tax, and tax some more.

This time, he wants to raise the liquor-by-the-drink tax to 15 percent and implement a whopping $2 per pack tax on cigarettes so that he can – you know this one by heart – help fund the black hole called Philadelphia schools.

The biggest problem, after you stop laughing, is figuring out which is more insane: the high probability that these taxes will be enacted, or that he actually thinks they will generate a fraction of the $70 million he predicts.

Reasonable people might be asking how Nutter could actually believe these taxes will work, and how they won’t accelerate the already significant exodus from the city.

In Nutter’s case, the answer is easy. When you are proud your city has the highest cumulative tax burden in the nation, more taxes is always the answer.

Nutter’s new taxes would certainly have lots of company, as his cherished revenue streams include taxes on: amusements, parking, business income and receipts, sales and use, hotel, tobacco and tobacco-related products, liquor, use and occupancy, mechanical amusement (distinct from amusement, of course), valet parking (again, different from regular parking), net profits, vehicle rental, outdoor advertising, trash, real estate, and, of course, the infamous city wage tax.

And he tried to get a soda tax, too, because he apparently cared about how fat people were becoming. But his sugary tax soiree was just too saccharine, and it failed.

Of particular interest is that Philadelphians pay not 6 percent sales tax like everyone else, but 8. Yep, that was part of the deal Nutter made with the state Legislature several years ago so that the “extra” revenue that tax would supposedly provide, along with suspending payments to the bankrupt pension fund for two years, would allow the city to regain its financial footing. The plan was to then pay $800 million into the pension to save its retirees from financial ruin.

Ummm, does anyone think that happened, given that the payment was due several years ago. Anyone? Nutter? Anyone?

Didn’t think so.

So many taxes are levied in the name of furthering “public education.” You know, the school system that perpetually runs massive deficits, has zero accountability, and has to cheat on standardized tests to pretend that it’s not the toxic waste dump everyone knows it to be. And despite all the billions spent, how many Philadelphia students pass basic proficiency tests? Here’s a hint. The percentage is much lower than Tom Corbett’s approval rating. And that’s pretty low.

♦

In presiding over the inexcusable lack of snow removal, innumerable police department scandals, violent flash mobs, endless taxation and regulation, and the bottomless pit called Philadelphia schools, Mayor Nutter has taken incompetence to a new level.

Unparalleled history. Ethnic neighborhoods. Great sports fans. Two major river systems begging for development (like the immensely successful riverwalks in San Antonio and Cincinnati). With what had been a world-class city at his feet, Nutter had the opportunity of a lifetime. Had he accomplished just a fraction of what he could have, the sky was truly the limit.

Instead, he crashed and burned on Day One. And it’s gotten worse ever since.

As Clint Eastwood says in Heartbreak Ridge, “You can love me, or you can hate me. Just don’t bore me.”

It’s tough to accomplish two of those three, but Michael Nutter has done so splendidly. Anyone not know which two?

Anyone? Mayor?

Didn’t think so.

 

Totally Nutter Tax Policy

Gaddafi Would Have Prevented Benghazi

Gaddafi Would Have Prevented Benghazi

Nine months ago most people would have guessed “Ben Ghazi” was the name of a professional basketball player. Now, of course, we know it as the Libyan city where four Americans, including our ambassador, lost their lives when terrorists stormed the U.S. consulate on Sept. 11, 2012.

Predictably, both sides have been spinning their version of what “really” happened (while conveniently omitting key facts), what went wrong, and who is to blame.

Since our political climate is now ultra-partisan, we probably will never know the real story of Benghazi. But cutting through the hype, here’s a reasonable analysis:

1. Violent attacks on U.S. diplomatic missions are not rare. There were 13 during the George W. Bush presidency, including a brazen assault on the consulate in Saudi Arabia that left nine dead, and major attacks in Tanzania and Kenya under Bill Clinton. Given that history, then, why is Benghazi still in the headlines? To highlight Obama administration incompetence? To score political points against Barack Obama, and, possibly, preempt a Hillary Clinton run in 2016? To show that American interests need to be better secured? All of the above.

2. Was the budget for diplomatic security cut, in part by the Republican Congress? Yes. Does that make some GOP critics of Benghazi’s security appear inconsistent? Yes. Does that make them responsible for the attack? No, though this is what happens when both parties spend like drunken sailors — not enough money is available for the truly important things because so many trillions are utterly wasted. The piper has been calling but Congress isn’t listening.

3. Was the attack precipitated by an anti-Islam movie made in America? Uh, no. That film may have added to the problem, of course, but while it was used as an excuse to riot and loot throughout the Arab world, it certainly was not the primary reason for the attack. To suggest otherwise, as some administration officials did, belies a gross naiveté, since many Muslim protestors had never heard of YouTube, let along owned a computer or smartphone capable of viewing the “offensive” movie. Being naïve isn’t a crime, but it doesn’t help matters.

4. Is there credence to the view that Obama wouldn’t label Benghazi a “terrorist” act and didn’t respond with more force because it would shatter his narrative that terrorism had been contained under his watch — and that such an attack would help Mitt Romney? That’s laughable. Romney wasn’t going to win, period. Benghazi (along with Hurricane Sandy and Chris Christie) had absolutely nothing to do with Romney’s loss — he took care of that feat all by himself. And quite frankly, the opposite would have occurred. Had U.S. forces beaten back the attack, saving lives in the process, Americans would have overwhelmingly approved of their commander in chief’s actions, totally ending what little chance Romney had of eeking out a victory.

So why wasn’t there a quicker response? Why didn’t the intelligence agencies see the attack coming? And who is ultimately to blame?

For all the blabbering from the talking heads, they still don’t get it.

Obama is solely to blame, because he, and he alone, willfully eliminated the best security system America had in Libya. One that, had it not been changed, would have almost certainly prevented the attack and saved lives.

Muammar Gaddafi.

The minute Barack Obama made the Bush-esque decision to engage in nation-building/regime change in Libya, there was no going back.

You reap what you sow, and the seeds of that ill-fated decision grew into Benghazi. There’s no sinister conspiracy behind why we didn’t act upon intelligence on the ground in Libya — for the simple reason that we didn’t have intelligence in Libya. That went out the window when Obama took out Gaddafi.

The rebels Obama armed in 2011, who gleefully executed Gaddafi in front of the world, are now running the country. Unfathomably, these very same folks were the largest foreign fighting force to engage the U.S. military in Iraq. A naïve question, to be sure, but did anyone in the Obama administration bother to think about that before participating in regime change of a sovereign nation?

Apparently not. And we just paid for that mistake in blood.

Did we really expect the new Libyan government to provide adequate defenses and intelligence to protect our diplomatic missions? For all we know, the attack could well have been coordinated by the thugs whom we put in power, using the very weapons we supplied — not to mention the 20,000 surface-to-air missiles missing since Gaddafi bit the dust.

Let’s be very clear here. Muammar Gaddafi was never an angel. But he became a leader with whom the West could work, even if his transformation was born of self-preservation. He was told to shape up or face the consequences, and he played ball. He admitted complicity in the Pan Am 103 bombing, paid reparations, dismantled his WMD/nuclear program, stopped harboring terrorists, and kept the oil spigots flowing. As a result, Libya was removed from the Terrorism List by the Bush administration, with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice praising it for its “renunciation of terrorism and the excellent cooperation Libya has provided to the U.S.”

But that “excellent cooperation” wasn’t enough. America broke its word when President Obama eliminated a leader who had done everything the United States had asked. Worst of all, there was no benefit to America in doing so, as the U.S. fought Europe’s oil war (85 percent of Libyan oil flows there).

In March 2011, Freindly Fire wrote: “The United States’ involvement in Libya, a nation that did not harm America, sets a dangerous precedent. Ironically, this effort, executed with no foresight and with no endgame, further endangers our security. Playing into the mentality of Muslims that the U.S. seeks to dominate their countries will only inflame anti-American feelings … the result will be chaos and armed factions roaming the country.”

If a not-too-bright commentator saw what was coming, why didn’t the president?

Obama may weather the IRS and AP scandals, but he will have Benghazi blood on his hands forever. And that’s an unimpeachable prognostication.

Birthday Of Church And The Path We Choose

Birthday Of Church And The Path We Choose
By Archbishop Charles  Chaput

Anything without heart, anything without love — and I mean politics, music, law, art, even religion — anything without love, no matter how brilliant, is finally inadequate and weak.
At the end of the day, the human soul yearns to be loved, and to love in
return.  And it won’t settle for anything less.

God loves us so deeply that he sent his only son to live, suffer, die and rise again for our salvation. That’s the message of Easter.  The message of Pentecost – the “birthday of the Church” that we celebrate this Sunday –
builds on Easter.  In sending his Holy Spirit to the Apostles in the
upper room, God invites each of us to join him in a passion for
evangelizing the world.  We are Christ’s witnesses.  Our mission is to
respond to the fire of God’s love.  But desire alone won’t remake the
world.  So how do we accomplish the work God sets before us?

First,
we need to wake up, shake off the cocoon of the world’s narcotic noise,
and recover our clarity about right and wrong. We do this by praying,
and we need to pray every day. Praying, no matter how unfocused we might
be at first, clears the head and the heart. It also clears the ears, so
we can hear God’s quiet voice. Setting aside some silent time with God
each day plants the first seed of sanity. It sends down deep roots, and
the soul grows a little stronger every day. If we listen well enough and
long enough, God will tell us what he wants uniquely from each of us.

Second,
we need to seek out confession regularly and stay close to the
Eucharist. We can’t lose hope when we know we’re forgiven. We can’t
starve to death when we’re being fed with the Bread of Life. And the
stronger we get in the Lord, the more we have to give to others. The
sacraments are literally rivers of grace. They bring us new life. They
have real power.

Third, we need to share Jesus Christ
consciously with someone every day. We need to make a deliberate point
of it. And we don’t have to hit people over the head with the Bible to
do it. Life naturally presents us with opportunities to talk about our
faith with friends or colleagues.  Nothing is more attractive than a
sincere, personal witness to the truth. And remember that what we give
away in faith, we get back a hundredfold.

Fourth, we need
to show a little courage. In the same Scripture passage where Jesus
tells us to go and make disciples of all nations, he also tells us that
he’ll be with us always, even to the end of the age. If that’s so — and
of course, it is so – then what can we really worry about? What
better friend can we have in the struggle for soul of the world, than
the God who created it and us?

Fifth and finally, we need
to be faithful to those who love us, and to those whom God calls us to
love. So often we overlook the simple fabric of daily life and the
persons who inhabit it. But that’s where real love begins. That’s where
all discipleship starts. It’s why Augustine wrote that “to be faithful
in little things is a big thing.”

God made each of us to make a
difference. Whether we seem to succeed or fail is not the point. We may
never see how God uses us to achieve his will. But it’s enough that we
try — and then profound things can happen.

Readers my age may remember that Dag Hammarskjold was secretary
general of the United Nations many years ago, during the Congo crisis in
the early 1960s. He was also a Christian serious about his faith.
Hammarskjold died when his plane crashed on a peace mission in Africa in
September 1961. After his death, his diary was found and published
under the title, Markings. This is a prayer he wrote in his diary shortly before his death:

[Oh God,]

Have mercy
Upon us.
Have mercy
Upon our efforts,
That we
Before Thee
In love and in faith
Righteousness and humility,
May follow Thee,
With self-denial, steadfastness and courage,
And meet Thee
In the silence.

Give us
A pure heart
That we may see Thee,
A humble heart
That we may hear Thee,
A heart of love
That we may serve Thee,
A heart of faith
That we may live Thee,

Thou
Whom I do not know
But Whose I am.
Thou
Whom I do not comprehend
But Who hast dedicated me
To my fate.
Thou —

We live in an era wounded by sadness and cynicism, but also ennobled by
men and women of grace; people not so very different from you and me.
This year, on this Pentecost, we get to choose which path to follow,
because while God’s Holy Spirit calls each of us by name to his service,
we have the freedom to say yes or no.

If we really want to
preach the Gospel, renew the Church and give glory to God in the years
ahead, the only means that will work is to speak the truth in love
through the witness of our lives. And it’s always been so.

Lord, make us instruments of your peace — now and always.

Birthday Of Church And The Path We Choose

IRS Persecutes CatholicVote.org

Reader Carol K reports that CatholicVote.org is also one of the Obama opponents that was subjected to harassment and intimidation by our government, which occurred in July 2009.

From a letter from the organization:

The recent revelations concerning the illegal actions by the IRS targeting conservative groups compel me to speak out.

In July 2009, the Chicago IRS office threatened the CatholicVote.org Education Fund.

The CV Education Fund is our 501(c)3 tax-exempt entity, created to educate, inspire and mobilize Catholic voters. As you may know, 501(c)3 charities, unlike our sister org (CatholicVote.org, a 501c4 organization) are not permitted to intervene in any political campaign or to oppose or support any political candidate.

We never did.

But according to the IRS, an unnamed source provided them information, including an email that we distributed prior to the 2008 election, which prompted their ‘examination.’

The email in question was titled “Barack Obama on the Issues of Importance to Catholics” and it specifically disclaimed any endorsement or approval of any political candidate.

In fact, our email did not even offer our position! Instead, we used actual Obama press releases and news stories to provide voters information on his positions on the issues of “abortion, stem cell research, contraceptives, and gay marriage.”

We urged voters to gather the facts, and ended our email with this line: “Let’s have an informed electorate on Tuesday.”

For this, we received a lengthy letter with over 50 questions asking for everything from how many people are on our email list, bank account names, and our checking account numbers.

Yes, even our checking account numbers!

To properly respond to the IRS, we were forced to divert staff time and precious resources to pay for legal counsel. Over a period of weeks, we provided the IRS everything they asked for.

But we didn’t stop there.

As a part of our response, we cited the IRS code, which explicitly states that charities like ours are permitted to reach the public with a ‘pure issue message.’ Nothing in the law prohibits organizations like ours from informing voters about the positions taken by candidates for public office. Our 501(c)3 entity has never endorsed, supported or expressly advocated the election or defeat of ANY political candidate.

We argued that the IRS code is vague and standardless, and that no objective standard exists to regulate what might or might not constitute political intervention – thus opening the door to abuse. We told the IRS that groups like ours should not be subjected to arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement.

If they chose to fine us, we were prepared to sue.

The IRS ultimately chose to do nothing – they backed down.

Why is this important? Because the IRS scandal brewing in Washington D.C. suggests that their examination of the CatholicVote.org Education Fund could have been politically motivated.

Were we targeted for our political views? Who and what prompted the IRS to investigate us?

Did their investigation have anything to do with our “Imagine the Potential” viral video celebrating the gift of life, including the choice for life made by Barack Obama’s mother that was watched by millions of people? This video was released 5 months before we were investigated and received national attention including coverage on the front page of the Washington Post website.

Was the IRS investigation intended to intimidate us, or have a chilling effect on our future plans?

We may never know. But we are going to do our best to find out. Reluctantly, we have decided to retain counsel to evaluate the IRS’ conduct and determine whether we can take action to fight back against this abuse of power. We want to know who induced the IRS to come after us, or whether that was a pretext, and whether the IRS or any government agency was attempting to thwart our lawful issue advocacy.

This is America. Something must be done to fight back. What we are witnessing in Washington is disgusting and shameful. We are better than this. Those responsible should be punished to the fullest extent of the law.

Thankfully we have thick skin, and some top-notch attorneys.

You can chip in to support our effort here.

But at least now you know.

And you deserve to know that we will always defend our right to speak the truth, and to provide you and every Catholic in America the resources they need to vote with an informed conscience.

Thank you, as always, for your ongoing support and prayers.

Sincerely,

Brian Burch, Director
CatholicVote.org Education Fund

 

IRS Persecutes CatholicVote.org

Liquor Privatization Done Right

Liquor Privatization Done Right
By Nathan A. Benefield

Picture this: You’re on your way home from visiting family in Delaware and decide to stop at a wine store near the Pennsylvania border. As you walk through the parking lot, something seems off.  For every Delaware license plate you see, there are three Pennsylvania plates. An aberration?  Hardly.

As a recent investigative video shows, liquor stores in New Jersey and Delaware are filled with Pennsylvania shoppers every day.  The video, produced by the state chapter of the National Federation of Independent Businesses, should shock no one.

We already know consumers shop with their feet—even the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board acknowledges it.  Their survey of Philadelphia region residents found nearly half shop in other states, costing the commonwealth hundreds of millions annually in sales due to “border bleed.”

Consumers want greater convenience, selection, and lower prices.  They want beer, wine, and liquor to be sold in local grocery stores.  They don’t want to drive as far, or make multiple stops.  And they want the ability to buy alcohol in whatever quantity they choose.  That’s why a Delaware shop had three times as many Pennsylvanians as Delaware shoppers.  But we can bring them back.

Lawmakers, customers, and activists celebrated the historic vote in the Pennsylvania House to end the government liquor store monopoly. Indeed, lawmakers accomplished what many pundits doubted was possible—and what several governors had tried and failed to do—by even holding a vote on a liquor store privatization bill.

But consumers and taxpayers have nothing to toast—not until the Senate and House agree to legislation that will earn Gov. Corbett’s signature. The challenge for lawmakers is balancing the free market consumers want with the demands of those already vested in the current system.

The state Senate has begun hearings on privatization and it is a near certainty they will do something, but what that something will be is far from certain.  Sen. Chuck McIlhinney, who chairs the committee taking up the House-passed bill, says he supports privatization, but what does privatization really mean?

Here are two key things that must happen in any bill to deliver for consumers and taxpayers:

First, lawmakers must increase retail competition.  This means licensing more stores to sell wine and spirits so consumers don’t need to cross state lines, allowing beer distributors and grocery stores to carry wine and liquor for greater convenience, and creating meaningful competition even if they don’t shut down the state-run stores immediately.

No Pennsylvanian wants to see a government monopoly replaced with a private one.  And providing a mechanism to close down state stores once private competition has ramped up, as the House-passed legislation did, will finally get government out of the booze business and allow the PLCB to focus on its regulatory mission.

Second, lawmakers must end the government monopoly over wholesale operations.  The wholesale monopoly allows government bureaucrats to determine what is sold in Pennsylvania and what isn’t, to set artificially high prices for every bottle sold, and to limit competition and selection.

The PLCB’s wholesale monopoly is the source of endless frustration for restaurant, winery, and bar owners and has produced a series of boondoggles on the taxpayer’s dime.  One of the biggest PLCB blunders is the branding and marketing of their own wine label, TableLeaf.  This government wine takes prominent shelf space away from Pennsylvania labels, yet the brand state taxpayers own is actually grown and bottled in California and directly competes with wineries right here in the Keystone State.

Thanks also to the PLCB wholesale monopoly, consumers were treated to the infamous wine kiosk program—elaborate vending machines in grocery stores that required a public breathalyzer test, identity verification, and a video sobriety test prior to allowing a sale.

It’s decades past time to get government out of our Prohibition-era liquor system. Pennsylvanians have suffered from the PLCB’s conflicts of interest and taxpayer-funded boondoggles for far too long.  Until lawmakers pass a plan that satisfies both consumers and stakeholders, we will continue to see shoppers stream across state lines for the convenience our government monopoly has failed to deliver.

Nathan A. Benefield is Director of Policy Analysis with the Commonwealth Foundation (CommonwealthFoundation.org).

 

Liquor Privatization Done Right

Dem Dirty Tricks In Delco Judicial Primary

Dem Dirty Tricks In Delco Judicial Primary
By Craig Williams

As you may know, William “Chip” Mackrides (A-3) and Richard M. Cappelli (A-6) are the endorsed Republican candidates for Judge of the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas. With the Primary election less than a week away, the Democratic candidates for judge have launched a dirty-tricks campaign to deceive Republican primary voters into thinking they are actually the Republican candidates.

Candidates can cross file in judicial races.

· Push buttons A-3 and A-6 to support Mackrides and Cappelli, the ONLY Republican candidates for Court of Common Pleas on the ballot. The other two candidates are longtime registered Democrats.

· Mackrides and Cappelli are the ONLY candidates for Judge voted “Well Qualified” by the Delaware County Bar Association to serve as judge. This is the Bar Association’s highest possible rating. The Democratic candidates were deemed not recommended/no opinion.

· Mackrides and Cappelli are supported by local law enforcement and are the ONLY candidates endorsed by the Delaware County Fraternal Order of Police.

· Mackrides and Cappelli have the support of the men and women of our local trade unions. They are the ONLY candidates endorsed by the Delaware County Council of the Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades, with more than 25,000 members from 14 unions.

 

Dem Dirty Tricks In Delco Judicial Primary