August, 2016, Part 5, Political Class Insanity: More Gun Control Failures, The Voting Dead In North Carolina, and More

It is the beginning of another month which means it is time again to review the latest political class insanity from the American political class. Each month it takes us multiple posts to cover the wasteful spending, incompetent government organizations and employees, government programs that usually make a problem worse than resolving it, inane and idiotic politician comments, etc. In fact, last month we set a record, needing ten full posts to cover it all.

To review past posts on this insanity and idiocy, just click on the first few posts in each month listed to the right of this page. After reviewing just a handful of these insanity posts we think you will agree that we are currently being served by the worst set of American politicians ever to hold office in our entire history.

It looks like our politicians have been especially insane over the past month or so let’s get started with the latest insanity from today’s American politicians:

1) Previously in this month’s series on political class insanity we showed that Chicago’s strict gun control laws have done absolutely nothing to curtail the criminal violence in the city. Dozens of citizens are shot every weekend with a handful of them dying from their wounds. We also showed how the level of violent crime across the country has recently started to tick upwards after decades of steady decline.

Turns out violent crime is doing a good business in the nation’s capital according to a recent Newsmax article. Statistics from the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department found that there were 162 homicides in the nation’s capital in 2015 vs. 105 in 2014, about a 60% increase in one year. But D.C., also like Chicago, also has some very stringent gun control laws and regulations. As with the Chicago politicians, the D.C. local politicians do not get it either, stricter gun control laws makes for more violence and crimes. And as with Chicago, the D.C. politicians have no idea why they are wrong or how to fix the increasing violence in their cities.

2) Democrats and liberals also get real uptight when it is suggested that one should have to provide an id in order to vote. In every other aspect of life, an id is required to execute a function, including getting credentials at the recent Democratic National Convention. But when it comes to perhaps the most important function in a democracy, voting, they somehow think that this is an undue burden on someone.

Now, those that think having an id is so terrible in order to vote, they will often make the claim that voter fraud is so small as being insignificant, and that requiring an id to vote solves a non-existent problem and is racist. But again, given the importance of the democracy concept of one vote, one person, shouldn’t we error on the safe side when it comes to voter fraud? Especially when you consider what was uncovered about the voter rolls in North Carolina a few years ago:

• An audit of the state’s voter rolls found that 2,214 North Carolina registered voters were over the age of 110 years old.
• Most of these 110 year olds were registered as Democrats and appeared to live in four Democratic-controlled counties in the state.
• Some of these vibrant 110 year olds voted via absentee ballots which in itself is a little suspicious from a potential voter fraud perspective.
• This analysis from the Carolina Transparency project found that 631 of those identified were Democrats who were over the age of 112 and two voters who actually voted in an election a few years ago are over the age of 150, one was 154 years old and the other was 160 years old.

So when a liberal or Democrat claims that voter fraud is not a problem, tell him or her about the Carolina Transparency analysis and results. Of course, this could be that North Carolina’s government voter processes are just so screwed up or it could be that there is serious voter fraud in at least four state counties. Which makes simple and easy voter id laws a worthwhile endeavor to protect us against people who theoretically are over 150 years old and still voting.

3) The concept of intrusive government is probably no better illustrated in this country than in California. Their very high taxes and high degree of business regulation often make a joke of democracy and freedom. But has it been worthwhile, have high taxes, over regulation, intrusive government mandates and laws, and the loss of freedom been worth it? Is the quality of life much better when politicians and unelected government bureaucrats control your life or are you better off when you can control your own life and fate?

A recent article by the National Review went a long way to answering that last question:

• 62% of California state roads have been rated as poor or mediocre.
• There have been significant cost overruns in the state’s high speed rail line effort before any track has even been laid.
• One third of San Francisco Bay area residents state they are hoping to leave at least that area soon.
• The total amount of in-state taxes are among the highest in the country.
• In addition to bad roads, the state’s education results rank near the bottom of all 50 states.
• Despite years of droughts, the state has not built a single new reservoir for a very long time.
• One out of every three U.S. welfare recipients live in California.
• About 25% of the state’s population lives below the poverty line.
• The state’s gas and electric costs are among the highest in the country.
• State union employee pension and medical programs are severely underfunded and facing insolvency.
• Half of the state’s tax revenue comes from a tiny, tiny group of ultra rich people, making the tax revenue stream vulnerable to outward migration of those ultra rich.
• One-third of California residents admitted to state hospitals for any causes suffer from diabetes, a sometimes-lethal disease often predicated on poor diet, lack of exercise, and excessive weight.
• Although San Francisco is one of the of the wealthiest areas of the state, multitudes of homeless people wander the city’s sidewalks.
• One in four residents of the state were not born in this country, placing heavy financial burdens on the state’s welfare programs.
• The state is devolving into a two tier society with an elite, wealthy tier along the coasts who are thriving off of the technology industry and the vast majority of other state residents in the rest of the state.
• Those on the coast can afford better roads, better schools, and better lives while the interior of the state residents are stuck with far less from life.
• As an example of this major societal disconnect, the article claims a house in Menlo Park on the coast would likely cost about $1,000 per square foot while a similar house three hours away in Madera would cost about $100 per square foot.
• Well intentioned and thought out ways to improve life have either been ignored by the political class in the state or struck down by liberal leaning state courts.

As we have often pointed out in this blog, the more government you have, the more taxes you impose, the more regulations you force on people, even if your intentions are good usually result in a wealthy political elite and their government sucking cronies and worse lives and less freedom and liberty for the vast majority of the residents being governed. 

We have shown how this concept worked in Detroit which is a former shell of a city, how it is corroding Chicago, and how the state of California with its high taxes, high number of regulations, oppressive politicians, and well connected wealthy residents are tarnishing what used to be called the “Golden State.”

4) One last piece of insanity today, courtesy of old Harry Reid, former Senate Majority leader, and a constant presence in this blog to do his inane quotes and general ineptness in being a leader. Historically, once the Democrats and Republicans choose their Presidential candidate those candidates are given confidential and top secret security briefings to keep them up speed on what is going on in the world and give them a running start if they should be elected. 

But recently Harry Reid declared he wants to stop that process because he is afraid of what Trump would do with it. Instead, he publicly declared that the CIA and other intelligence organizations should give Trump false information. Yes, actually feed the potential next President lies and falsehoods, to what end I do not know. 

He failed to make the same assertion relative to Hillary Clinton who has actually been proven by a massive FBI investigation to be unable to keep government secrets safe. Talk about hypocrisy: punish the candidate that has no history or spilling confidential information all of the Internet and let the candidate that violated secrecy laws, regulations, and guidelines get access to all of the secret information the government can provide. Insanity.

Enough insanity for today: Harry Reid still making no sense, the voting dead in North Carolina, the collapse of life in California, and more gun control failures.

Our book, "Love My Country, Loathe My Government - Fifty First Steps To Restoring Our Freedom And Destroying The American Political Class" is now available at:

www.loathemygovernment.com

It is also available online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Please pass our message of freedom onward. Let your friends and family know about our websites and blogs, ask your library to carry the book, and respect freedom for both yourselves and others everyday.

Please visit the following sites for freedom:


http://www.reason.com
http://www.cato.org
http://www.bankruptingamerica.org
http://www.conventionofstates.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08j0sYUOb5w