Author Archive | Rich Hand

The only reason we have any infrastructure in this country is because of the American business man and woman. There is no credit that can be given to the government for the creativity and ingenuity it takes to start, implement, maintain, and grow a successful business.

How and why do roads and bridges get built? First the why. In most communities across the nation roads and bridges are supported by business people in the community that believe if we build the bridge it will add value to the community from an economic standpoint. Whether it is a local development where developers build the roads and bridges or a regional project to bring a mall to the area, businessman and woman begin the efforts. If we left infrastructure up to the people in government we would still be rowing across the Hudson and Mississippi Rivers. Bureaucrats don’t come up with the ideas, the private sector does. Bureaucrats simply slow down the process.

The how? Roads and bridges are designed in most part by private engineering businesses through contracts awarded by the government. The money used to build the bridges is tax dollars created in the private sector by the businesses that pay taxes. The government again is a middle man often slowing down or impeding the process. So without the taxpayer, ideas from the private sector and the blood sweat and tears of the private sector nothing gets done. Continue Reading →

No matter what decision the Supreme Court reaches regarding Obamacare, the SCOTUS is, and has been, acting unconstitutionally for decades since FDR. The U.S. Constitution is clear on the role of the court, as are the Federal Papers and the many correspondences between the founders. Its role is simply as arbiter, not legislator. Legislation and law were intended to be introduced and voted on in the House first and foremost. The Constitution is clear about who holds the law making responsibility. There is no alternative, including interpretations of laws by the SCOTUS. They were only meant to validate or invalidate a laws legitimacy based on the founder’s intent.

Let’s start with the intent. The intended purpose of the Constitution was to limit Federal Power. The clearest and easiest evidence to understand and to support that is the Tenth Amendment. Why else would the founders/states have insisted on this addition if the intent was not to limit central power? The U.S. Constitution would not have been ratified without the guarantee of the Bill of Rights, which includes the 10th Amendment. The Bill of Rights underlines the distrust the states and the people had for this newly formed central government. Today, it is painfully apparent how little the power of the Tenth Amendment has been utilized in the fight to curb centralized programs. But it has seen a renewed commitment to make it relevant again.

The SCOTUS was intended by the founders to simply serve as referee to ensure the legislature only passes laws that meet the limits and protections within the Constitution. Madison believed the role would be utilized on a very limited basis, and in the Federal Papers, he insists the concern about precedence was unwarranted. He suggested that every case that came before the SCOTUS would be looked at from the perspective of the original intent and not subsequent cases. How wrong he was. Continue Reading →

The vision of our founders that was captured in the document we call the constitution is nothing short of a miracle. As we look at the political environment today, it is clear how truly brilliant our founders actually were. The Constitution was created to limit the government from controlling the lives of the governed. For the first time in history the people were put in charge of the government instead of government bureaucrats controlling the people.

You would never know we had a Constitution if you were dropped in this country from another planet. If you were a Founder who had risen from the grave this country’s operations would be an obvious indication the country had somehow been take over by a coup d etat. The obvious questions our Founders would have:

Who allowed the Federal Government to break the law of the constitution? This would have to be answered with We the People. We the people have ignored our duty to hold our politicians accountable to the law of the land. We are also responsible for electing politicians that have failed to abide by the Constitution. Continue Reading →

The Congress and the president have come up with yet another temporary “fix” to the latest funding extension to a budget that hasn’t been passed in over two years plus. It seems we are always scrambling to avoid another federal government shutdown. Well I say let the place shut down. Then at least we will know we are saving some money. The problem with the shutdown for government types is as long as Social Security checks go out, no one will notice the shutdown!

Here is my proposal for these incompetent lawmakers: if all you can pass is temporary measures then we will pay you temporary wages. How about you come to congress for two months a year, do the business of the people and go home. This way we can eliminate the high pay, fabulous benefits and permanent pensions. I think it’s a win for the American people. Continue Reading →

What we are seeing with the “Occupy Wall Street” crowd is the result of a failure to educate our citizens properly at the elementary and high school levels. It is embarrassing to listen to these protesters who have little clue about capitalism or the reason they exist in this world.

One of the protesters was asked if you want to change the capitalist system, what would you like to replace it with? The blank stare said it all. The student had no idea what the alternative should be and I would guess didn’t even understand how capitalism actually works.

This country is the greatest economic and moral engine of the world. It is the greatest economic engine because we have a capitalist system. We are a beacon for the world because our moral foundation is based on Judeo Christian values. We have a constitution that limits the federal government from infringing on both of these attributes but the current administration along with previous administrations have ignored these limits therefore giving us the malaise we are currently in. Continue Reading →

There is no better excuse to dictate policy than crisis. Our founders knew the propensity of humans to dictate their will through group think in emotional situations. The founders feared and despised central rule by a King and were determined in the constitution to protect against both dictatorship and group or mob rule.

We are starting to hear politicians that are responsible for creating the current economic mess (chaos) talking about suspending democratic rule. First, we are not a democracy but what they are suggesting is we the people be stripped of our right to vote in or out our representatives to the federal government. These are not fringe lunatics that hold no power; they are a current congress woman and the governor of North Carolina. Their argument is that elected politicians can’t do what they want for fear of being voted out next election. My question is if they are in fear of being voted out of office by their constituents then the policies they are pursuing may be the problem. The reason our representative government does work is that representatives must face re-election every two years. Continue Reading →

What is private property? Private property is the legally recognized ability of individuals to claim ownership of items including real property but not exclusive to real property. For example, copyrights and patents protect the private property rights of ideas and inventions. Without the ability to own property there is no foundation for freedom.

If all property and ideas are communal (belong to the society) how do you provide for your own needs? And if you can’t provide for your own needs how can anyone be free? The opposite of freedom is dependency. This is not the home of the dependent it is the home of the free. The founders were adamant about private property and understood the importance of it to a free and strong economic foundation. The communists and socialists believe property is owned by the society and the government is the arbiter of how the resources of society are distributed. Our government is acting more and more as if private property is owned by the state. Take the financial industry and auto industry takeovers of the past few years. These acts were appalling for anyone that believes in freedom and capitalism and it was extremely disappointing for people that believe in and respect the Constitution of the United States. The latest example is forcing individuals to use their own private property to buy health insurance. Money is private property.

There are many examples of private property breaches by our government including a number of eminent domain cases that took private real property because a government bureaucracy deemed that the property was more valuable to the community if developed into a mall. It was argued that the private homes generated less tax revenue than a proposed mall therefore it was in the interest of the government to take the property. A huge stretch of the original intent of eminent domain law. Continue Reading →

The Tea Party movement is under assault and there is a concerted effort to define them as radical outsiders and hell bent on destroying the federal government. The attacks are coming from politicians that believe they know best about the things we need, and will take all the resource necessary to deliver on their grand promises. The Tea Party disagrees.

The founders of this nation were patriots that at the time were being defined in a similar fashion by the British establishment as Washington today is defining the Tea Party. It is amazing how history repeats itself when people fail to study their history. The Tea Party is simply asking the federal government to act within the constitution and live within the means we the people have set for them. There is no terrorism or radicalism in that philosophy. It is a simple request and it will be adhered to one way or the other. The government serves at the will of the people. The Tea Party represents the people.

“When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.” Continue Reading →

It is common for those that oppose any reforms in entitlement programs to lump the elderly, poor, and disabled into a category of folks that must be protected from reductions in government programs. It drives me crazy when the media broad brushes these groups to support arguments against any real reform of any government program. It’s as if every elderly, poor, or disabled person has to rely on a government program to survive.

Nothing could be further from the truth to think that these groups need government support. The “elderly” are actually as a group some of the most affluent Americans both economically and emotionally. After years of working, many elderly Americans own their homes outright, have both private pensions and social security, and many work to supplement their savings and retirement. There are some elderly on a “fixed” income but it is not every elderly American.

The “poor” in America are a very diverse group of individuals. The first question we need to ask is why are they poor? Could it be they have been depending on government programs instead of their own ingenuity? Could it be they have been brought up by single mother no father “families” that have been perpetuated by government programs that incentivize unhealthy behavior? Could it be a choice to rely on drugs and alcohol? Have government bureaucrats that depend on these vices for their living become advocates to keep people poor? The failure of government education has kept people from breaking out of their socioeconomic circumstances and we need to wrestle schools from the government. Should we be supporting programs that perpetuate a hopeless future? Continue Reading →

Big government breeds big failure.

Fact; education scores are lowest where government has the most control and parents expect government to teach their children

Fact; the economy will never recover because the reality is we are bankrupt. If the government was a private company they would be forced to close by, well, government regulators.

Fact; the federal workforce is made up of mostly people paid to enforce the regulations of well, the federal bureaucracy.

Fact; government programs have grown based on arbitrary numbers determined by well, the people running the government programs.

Fact; the majority of American school children don’t know we are a republic, are governed by a constitution or the three branches of government. In Detroit a majority can’t even read.

Fact; most politicians in congress have never held a real job. They are mostly lawyers, and bad ones at that. Continue Reading →