The Quiet Conservative June 18, 2008
While You were Sleeping
Defenders of traditional America are sleeping. Or, they are busy working. Or, they feel helpless.
Or, they don’t see how fighting back is their problem. Or, they don’t want to contribute the money.
Or, they are watching American Idol.
Those who believe traditional America should be swept away are in no ways similarly distracted.
They are working together to make a “Change you can believe in.” They are making the
commitment in time. They are making the commitment in money. They are making the
commitment to dominate the access of information for the everyday people. When they say it is
“change you can believe in”, they mean the loss of your individual freedom. They mean the
suppression of all freedom in favor of the group. They are making great strides too; there is more
than one way of depriving someone of freedom. They are trying them all.
The most glaring example of the loss of personal freedom is the loss of economic freedom. Those
on the left are busy ensuring your lack of options. They plan to raise taxes on you income. They
mean to raise taxes on businesses and their products. By pursuing policies that do not allow domestic
energy production they plan to dictate how you live your lives. What may not be understood fully by
people until they sit down and think it through is the left wants gas prices to be high. If prices were
lower you would drive more and drive bigger cars. You could go more places. You could buy more
things. You could have a better life. You would have a choice. That cannot be allowed.
When you look at the paper you see trucks and SUV’s for sale as people cannot afford to drive
them. Smaller cars, hybrid cars, and mass transit are being forced on you. To the progressives this
is progress. You aren't being asked to change; you are being forced to change. The progressives in
government are forcing this change in your life without your consent. They do not believe in a
government of the people, by the people and for the people, they believe in the government leading
the people, deciding for the people, controlling the people.
This entire energy crunch in supply we are going through is occurring while we sit on an ocean of
energy resources in the form of coal and oil. Would the free market access these resources? Would
capitalism allow this? Would freedom to prosper allow this? Absolutely. But those resources are
locked away by the elitists on the left. They don’t want you to use resources. They want you to
shrink, not grow. If you are prosperous and happy you cannot be controlled.
It’s not just fossil fuels. The left has created a regulatory wall against nuclear power for over
thirty years. While France runs 80% on its nuclear plants America, where nuclear power was
invented, hasn't built a new nuclear plant since the Watts Bar 1 reactor in 1996. Its companion,
Watts Bar 2 was cancelled due to the activists. Both began their construction in 1973. You can see
nuclear power plants just don’t spring up overnight if it took 23 years to get Watts Bar 1 open.
While nuclear is once again becoming a focus, elements of the left are fighting hard to prevent the
spread of nuclear power. Currently we generate only 20% of our electricity from nuclear means and
most of that is in only five states.
Instead off affordable energy the left has mounted a very effective campaign for renewable sources
of energy. The call is for wind and solar and geothermal and whatever else might one day come
down the pike. The only problem is that these aren't real now and they aren't economically viable
now.
Short on practicality the progressives renewable campaign is long on vision. They usually lead with
the fact that Americans use 26% of the annual energy needs of the planet while comprising only 5%
of the population. This is said to make you feel guilty. “Do without…conserve… be green” is the
mantra. “There are two billion people on the planet without electricity. You should use less,” and
the ever popular “what is your carbon footprint?”
But, in fact, this thinking is exactly wrong. Think it through a moment. If any of those two billion
people could have clean drinking water, refrigerated food, air conditioning in summer and heat in the
winter- at the flip of a switch or the twist of the thermostat- don’t you think they would? Many of
those two billion would dearly love to have moments of their day that wasn't spent generating their
own food or fuel. It is only in the land of so much plenty that wanting to be poor and
miserable is being promoted as something virtuous.
Here in Kansas we are not only not immune to such stupidity, we actively promote such stupidity.
Recently the Sunflower coal plant’s additions were vetoed by our Governor. We chased away
billions in jobs, fees, cheaper future power, economic development in Western Kansas, and tax
revenue. Why? Because of the leftist myth of global warming. Governor Sebelius and her
appointees don’t like coal because of carbon dioxide, (The gas necessary for plant growth.) She also
stated the coal plants weren't necessary because they would not only produce power inside the state
they would export power to other states making the company a profit. Nothing offends socialism like
people making profits.
Last week the Lt. Governor, Mark Parkinson, promoted wind energy as a potential 20-25% of the
state’s energy needs. He stated this was the maximum figure. As quoted in the Topeka Capital-
Journal on June 11, 2008 “We know there is just a certain amount of wind we can integrate into our
electrical system in Kansas. How do we keep the momentum going? We’re probably talking about
export.” Contrasting the two it would seem generating energy for export from coal is bad, generating
energy for export from wind is good.
Beyond focusing on the hypocrisy of the left on the surplus energy, why stop at 20-25% of wind
as our source for energy? Why not go all the way to 100%? After all, Kansas is a windy state.
Right now it generates about 2% of our needs. Surely we can jump it up all the way.
Unless…unless there is something about this renewable energy source they aren't telling you.
That something is that wind does not supply reliable energy. Sometimes the wind doesn't blow.
Sometimes it blows too hard and the turbines are shut down. Sometimes maintenance is an issue.
Sometimes the wind blows just fine but not where the turbines are located. So when energy needs
are considered on the power grid, the power source must be able to handle the entire load all the
time. Build wind to 20-25% of Kansas power needs and you have to have conventional power
expand to cover that 20-25%. In other words, you have to build a coal plant or oil or nuclear plant to
be able to cover 100% of what you expect the wind power to maybe provide. Otherwise the power
would go out when the wind isn't blowing just right. It is why the good Lt. Governor capped wind
at such a small percentage.
Overall the loss of economic freedom through progressive policies is advancing quite nicely. The
rise of gas prices at the pump and in your home is weakening you. The high cost of energy and the
refusal at the national level to allow its correction is affecting you not only in the car you drive but in
every single manufactured good you purchase and every morsel of food you buy.
But taking away your financial independence is only part of the game. The progressives are also
intent on crushing your traditional values and freedoms. In California gay marriages are under way
as people across the nation fly there to be married. They will then come home and seek to overturn
state laws and constitutions that define what marriage is: the joining of a man and a woman together
as husband and wife.
This crack at the basic foundation of society is definitely on purpose. And, it isn't done to just
destroy the institution of marriage. It is the beginning of the assault on Christianity and religion
nationwide. You see this not only with the New Mexico Human Rights Commission fining a
Christian photographer for not photographing a lesbian commitment ceremony; you see it happening
across the nation.
From an NPR news story by Barbara Bradley Hagerty, two lesbians filed a complaint with the
New Jersey for not being allowed to use a pavilion owned by a Methodist group for their lesbian
commitment ceremony. Their attorney spells it out quite clearly in the story: “Our law against
discrimination does not allow (the group) to use those personal preferences, no matter how deeply
held, and no matter—even if there are religiously based—as grounds to discriminate. Religion
shouldn't be about violating the law.” The story is titled: “Gay Rights, Religious Liberties: A Three-
Act Story.” It is quite disturbing to read how religion is being suppressed in favor of people’s sexual
preferences. But as our brave progressive society embraces this crushing of religious and economic
freedom, it might be interesting to compare it with a checklist written into the Congressional Record
in 1963. (Political Goals of the Left). Below are some that come to mind just as a way of keeping
score:
3. Develop the illusion that total disarmament [by] the United States would be a demonstration of
moral strength.
4. Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether
or not items could be used for war. (Chinese obtaining classified materials seems relevant.)
6. Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination.
7. Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N.
11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, demand that it be set
up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders
believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two
centers compete with each other as they are now doing in the Congo.)
12. Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party.
13. Do away with all loyalty oaths.
15. Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States.
16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming
their activities violate civil rights.
17. Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current
Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers' associations. Put the
party line in textbooks.
18. Gain control of all student newspapers.
19. Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under
Communist attack.
20. Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policy
making positions.
21. Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures.
22. Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American
Communist cell was told to "eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute
shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms."
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