"The Vision of the Anointed" and Other Stogie Stuff

The Vision of the Anointed
Upon R.S. McCain's advice to readers, I just purchased the PC Kindle version of Thomas Sowell's "The Vision of the Anointed."  It looks to be a fascinating book, a peak into the assumptions and premises of liberal thought.

Sowell explains how liberals see themselves -- as morally superior and more intelligent than anyone else.  This is why they have such disdain for conservatives, assuming as they do, that their thought patterns and beliefs are the evolutionary apex of thought, analysis and understanding of the world around them.  Working under the assumption that they are just so damned smart, informed and knowledgeable, liberals automatically assume that those with different opinions are neanderthals, rednecks, pickup-driving oafs in tank tops and baseball hats.

I am looking forward to reading this book.

New iPhone 5
Yep, I got one.  This week I retired my four year old iPhone 3 for the iPhone 5.  I am not one of those cell phone aficionados who must have all the latest tweaks, gadgets and features.  However, it was time for a newer phone.  Haven't checked out all the features, but I do like the built-in digital camera (8 megapixels -- that's about as good as my actual digital camera).  Also like the apps available -- I use Loseit.com as well as a bank gadget for making deposits by iPhone, and recently added a couple of apps for Spanish language study -- dictionaries and a verb conjugator.

Thomas Sowell on Greed

Ten Ways Democrats Undermine American Democracy

Thomas Sowell, a great man and a great conservative, wrote this on May 1:

When I see the worsening degeneracy in our politicians, our media, our educators, and our intelligentsia, I can't help wondering if the day may yet come when the only thing that can save this country is a military coup.

I hate to admit it, but I sometimes feel this same sentiment creeping into the background of my mind. That and this question: does Democracy really work? Or does it contain the seeds of its own destruction?

The highest ideal for democracy is that an informed electorate hears the facts and arguments for each candidate and political platform and then makes an intelligent decision on whom to vote for. In reality, the desire for power and votes is so great that the candidates lie and slander each other and attempt to suppress facts that damage their positions. Character defamation is the order of the day, with each side hiring private detectives to dig up any "facts" in order sully the other side.

In the Democrats' favor is the mainstream media, who enthusiastically support their efforts. The day before the recall election in California, for example, when the Los Angeles Times published the apocryphal testimony of a score of women who claimed Arnold Schwarzenegger had groped them sometime in the past. There was almost no time for Arnie to mount a rebuttal.
In the same way, Dan Rather introduced forged military documents that asserted George Bush was a spoiled rich kid who dodged his duties in the Air National Guard. Thankfully, he was exposed by the blogosphere.

The game that the Democrats play is to win at all costs, including the cost of their own integrity. That game includes the following items.

TEN WAYS DEMOCRATS UNDERMINE AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

1. Slander the opposition, ideally right before the election so they won't have time to refute it. Drive home the slander through endless innuendo and repetition.
2. Buy the votes of many with wasteful social programs and "free" government handouts.
3. Suppress the votes of Republicans (e.g. by invalidating votes from military personnel serving overseas).
4. Gerrymander voting districts so that Democrats are always in the majority.
5. Appoint liberal activist judges, so that when Democrats lose elections, the judges can reverse the election from the bench, e.g. like the immigration law passed in California.
6. Steal elections by ballot box stuffing, as the current Governor of Washington did to overcome a narrow margin that would have given the win to the Republican. Other examples of Democrat ballot stufffing, dead people voting, etc. are legendary.
7. Constantly clamor for the resignation of some high Republican official through manufactured controversies (Donald Rumsfeld, Alberto Gonzales). Use Congressional subpoenas to create show trials for the persecution of these officials. This creates an impression of corruption and impropriety where none exists, gains much negative publicity for the Republicans and serves to punish and terrorize those who are not compliant to Democrat goals.
8. Misuse the the prosecutor's role to prosecute Republican officials for non-crimes, as was done to Scooter Libby and Tom DeLay. This scorched-earth policy is intened to punish and terrorize Republican officials through literally ruining the lives and careers of a selected few to serve as examples.
9. Preserve the Democratic majority by gaining control of education and feeding school children leftist propaganda so they will vote "right" in the future.
10. Ditto the above for college campuses, by funding leftist speakers and hiring leftist professors while suppressing those with a conservative point of view.

There are so many who would subvert our democracy through dishonest and ruthless means. If we continue to abuse it, we may eventually lose it.