Category Archives: Current Events

Open letter to President Obama (Part 284)

April 1, 2013 – 7:08 am

 

President Obama c/o The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President,

I know that you receive 20,000 letters a day and that you actually read 10 of them every day. I really do respect you for trying to get a pulse on what is going on out here.

On October 15, 1992 in the Presidential Debate this question was asked:

The focus of my work as a domestic mediator is meeting the needs of the children that I work with, by way of their parents, and not the wants of their parents. And I ask the three of you, how can we, as symbolically the children of the future president, expect the two of you, the three of you to meet our needs, the needs in housing and in crime and you name it, as opposed to the wants of your political spin doctors and your political parties?

I wish one of the three candidates would have  given a blunt answer. We don’t need more government but we need less. Why does anyone think that the government should try meet everyone’s needs? Why does anyone think that equality at the finish line is what we are seeking? We need the federal government to stop spending almost 25% of GDP. The people should be allowed to spend more of their own money.

Take a look at this fine article below and the great quote by Barry Goldwater:

In this modern era where we’re all supposed to share our innermost thoughts, I’ve openly discussed my fantasies.

I confessed to the world, for instance, that I have a fantasy that involves about one-half of the adults in America. And I’ve also admitted to a fantasy involving Gov. Rick Perry of Texas.

Now I’m fantasizing about something new, and it’s all the fault of the Cato Institute. In a violation of the Constitution’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment, I have to watch tonight’s presidential debate in order to add my two cents to Cato’s live-blogging of the clash between Obama and Romney.

That got me thinking about some of my least-favorite episodes from past debates, and this moment from 1992 is high on my list (I had to watch that debate because my then-wife worked for the Bush Administration and I had to offer some insincere moral support).

The clip is a bit over three minutes, but it will only take a minute or so to see why this was such an unpleasant segment.

Here’s my latest fantasy. If there’s a similar question tonight, I hope either Romney or Obama gives the following response:

I’m not your daddy and you’re not my child. I’m running to be the President of the United States in order to oversee the legitimate executive branch responsibilities of the federal government. And I hope to reduce the burden of government to give you opportunities, not to take care of your needs. You’re an able-bodied adult. Take responsibility for your own life and provide for your own needs.

But I don’t expect my fantasy to get fulfilled. If a question like this is asked, both Obama and Romney almost surely will express sympathy and support.

The good news is that there have been a few politicians in American’s history who have been willing to say the right thing. Here’s a quote from Barry Goldwater that warms my heart.

I have little interest in streamlining government or in making it more efficient, for I mean to reduce its size. I do not undertake to promote welfare, for I propose to extend freedom. My aim is not to pass laws, but to repeal them. …I will not attempt to discover whether legislation is “needed” before I have first determined whether it is constitutionally permissible. And if I should later be attacked for neglecting my constituents’ “interests,” I shall reply that I was informed that their main interest is liberty and that in that cause I am doing the very best I can.

The bad news is that he got his you-know-what kicked in the 1964 election.

On the other hand, America did elect a President who said during his inauguration that “government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem.”

And a 2011 poll showed that Americans – unlike their European counterparts – do not believe it is government’s job to guarantee that “nobody is in need.”

In other words, Julia, the fictional moocher woman created by the Obama campaign, is not representative of America. At least not yet.

____________

Thank you so much for your time. I know how valuable it is. I also appreciate the fine family that you have and your commitment as a father and a husband.

Sincerely,

Everette Hatcher III, 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002, ph 501-920-5733, lowcostsqueegees@yahoo.com

By Everette Hatcher III | Also posted in President Obama, spending out of control, Taxes | Comments (0)

“Music Monday” All-American Rejects Part 3 (Lessons from Tyson Ritter and the path of sexual impurity)

April 1, 2013 – 7:00 am

The Poison – The All-American Rejects

Avril Lavigne and Tyson Ritter from All American Rejects Talk Almost Alice

The All-American Rejects – Dirty Little Secret

Tyson Ritter, the leadsinger of the All-American Rejects has admitted that he was a jerk for the last couple of years when he lived a sexually impure life by sleeping with several different ladies during his years in LA. Ritter says he has learned from his mistakes of his past and was glad his fellow band members rescued him from that lifestyle and got him back working with the band. I wonder if Tyson knows how serious the consequences can be if someone takes the path of sexual impurity?

Brandon Barnard in his message on sexual purity at Fellowship Bible Church on July 24, 2011 makes much of this issue. He points out THE PATHWAY OF IMPURITY IS PROMISING BUT DECEIVING. Then he read these scriptures below:

Proverbs 5:4

English Standard Version (ESV)

4but in the end she is bitter as wormwood,
    sharp as a two-edged sword.

Proverbs 7:18-20

English Standard Version (ESV)

18Come, let us take our fill of love till morning;
   let us delight ourselves with love.
19For my husband is not at home;
   he has gone on a long journey;
20he took a bag of money with him;
   at full moon he will come home.”

Billboard TMI EPISODE 20 INTERVIEW WITH THE ALL AMERICAN REJECTS

The All-American Rejects – The Wind Blows (Version)

http://okgazette.com/oklahoma/article-14860-giving-them-hell.html

Although The All-American Rejects long ago traded Stillwater for Los Angeles, their Midwestern sensibilities help them ‘Move Along’ the path of global greatness.

Matt Carney April 4th, 2012  

The All-American Rejects with A Rocket to the Moon
7 p.m. Friday
Diamond Ballroom
8001 S. Eastern
diamondballroom.net
677-9169
$22-$24

Credits: Lauren Dukoff

You’ve heard The All-American Rejects’ mythology before.Talented small-town Stillwater high schoolers’ album gets scooped from the trash by a record label intern: music videos, hit singles, major-label deals, high-grossing worldwide tours and dalliances with celebrities ensue. In short, all the stuff that constitutes the first half of an episode of VH1’s Behind the Music: you know, before the heroin problems and velvet capes.

But the band of scruffy, powerpopping teens that originated in 1999 and blew up nationally when catchy pop-punk was all the rage (Sum 41, anyone?) has managed to avoid the squabbles and noxious drama that have disintegrated the infrastructure of so many groups struggling with the weight and pressure of fame.

“We’ve never fought,” said lead singer and bassist Tyson Ritter, all of 27 years old. “I’m not completely sure why, but it may be that we have two things in common: the fact that we’re from Oklahoma, and the fact that we want to stay in this band.”

Now, little more than a week since the release of the Rejects’ fourth studio album, Kids in the Street, Ritter and company — whose lineup has remained intact since DreamWorks Records released their 2003 debut — look more like a perennial pop contender than some short-lived upstart.

“We didn’t buy into the hype of running and chasing success,” Ritter said. “Regardless of label pressure — regardless of anything — we always take our time to craft our next record. Because not only do we want to tour for a long time, we want to be proud of it, to share it. The bands that haven’t survived, they haven’t for a reason: You hear the falseness in the music they put out. And when you don’t believe a band you love, you quit listening.”
‘Raised them right’

This dedication to preservation has kept audiences’ ears. Ritter shrewdly has guarded against the usual offers and requests to invite collaborators into the Rejects’ fold.

“That stuff’s been an option,” he said. “People throw that shit at you.”

One such opportunity manifested during the recording of Kids, after the Rejects heard the work of a fellow Oklahoman in Los Angeles, a gifted singer named Audra Mae.

“Her voice was so massive and soulful,” Ritter said. “We got in touch with her management because we loved her voice and that she was from Oklahoma. You meet Okies out here and they’re always kindhearted, sweet people. We hit it off like ham and eggs.”

Mae, who was born at Tinker Air Force Base, raised in Edmond, and attended Putnam City High School, sings backup on three Kids tracks, including the first single, “Beekeeper’s Daughter,” a playful pop number that’s cracked the Top 40 on three Billboard charts since its Jan. 31 release.

“Their mamas obviously raised them right,” said Mae, an LA resident for nearly a decade. “You get used to bands where the lead singer’s just a bullheaded idiot — it’s not like that with them. They’re really brothers and they love each other so much, it was so nice to be around. We hung out, talked about cars, Oklahoma, and Tyson filled up my gas tank and washed the windows on my car ’cause he’s the sweetest man alive.”

Step up to the Street

After enjoying worldwide success with hit singles like “Dirty Little Secret” and “Move Along” (a finalist for Oklahoma’s official state rock song), Ritter found himself hardened with cynicism after years of “living in front of a tape recorder.” After a break in the band he described as a ninemonth “lost weekend in LA,” he felt the need to channel his “quarter-life crisis” into a record.

Instead of dialing up a DJ to take advantage of mainstream pop’s dubstep craze or bringing Katy Perry in to hatch a hit single, the Rejects did what they usually do when they need to write songs: They fled.

In this case, to a cabin in Maine. “We go up there for the windows, ’cause we stay inside the whole time, but the windows sure show a nice picture,” Ritter said. “We found some really cool moments for the record, like ‘Walk Over Me,’ which I remember was one of those songs you write in 10 minutes. Those are the ones that weren’t compromised by thought.”

The Rejects are a throwback-type band that’s unforgiving in its commitment to the classic-rock era’s idea of unforced, “pure” songwriting. At its best, this process captures gushing, earnest moments of gleeful puppy love (“Swing, Swing”), dramatic breakups (“It Ends Tonight”) and when-all-else-fails optimism (“Move Along”). It’s unique to the modern pop landscape.

“There’s a difference between being a mainstream band and being a mainstream band that really floods itself into the mainstream,” Ritter said. “When you’re contriving collaborations and doing something that didn’t actually happen…

_______________

By Everette Hatcher III | Comments (0)

Johnny Cash (Part 3)

April 1, 2013 – 12:17 am

I got to hear Johnny Cash sing in person back in 1978.  Here is a portion of an article about his Christian Testimony.

 
A Walking Contradiction
Cash’s daughter, singer-songwriter Rosanne Cash, once pointed out that “my father was raised a Baptist, but he has the soul of a mystic. He’s a profoundly spiritual man, but he readily admits to a continual attraction for all seven deadly sins.””There’s nothing hypocritical about it,” Johnny Cash told Rolling Stonescribe Anthony DeCurtis. “There is a spiritual side to me that goes real deep, but I confess right up front that I’m the biggest sinner of them all.” To Cash, even his near deadly bout with drug addiction contained a crucial spiritual element. “I used drugs to escape, and they worked pretty well when I was younger. But they devastated me physically and emotionally—and spiritually … [they put me] in such a low state that I couldn’t communicate with God. There’s no lonelier place to be. I was separated from God, and I wasn’t even trying to call on him. I knew that there was no line of communication. But he came back. And I came back.”Years after his return to the land of the living, Cash once got a visit from U2 members Bono and Adam Clayton who were driving across the U.S., taking in the local colors. The three of them sat around a table before their meal, and Cash floored the two Irishmen with an incredible prayer of thanksgiving to God. Then, without skipping a beat, he raised his head and quipped, “Sure miss the drugs, though.”Cash sums up his soul’s murky landscape—if that’s possible—better than anybody else: “I’m still a Christian, as I have been all my life. Beyond that I get complicated. I endorse Kris Kristofferson’s line about me: ‘He’s a walking contradiction, partly truth and partly fiction.’ I also like Rosanne’s line: ‘He believes what he says, but that don’t make him a saint.’ I dobelieve what I say. There are levels of honesty, though.”Sigh.At this juncture, you may be asking why the book you’re holding is attempting to figure out the spiritual nature of this man. A puzzling personality who once implored, “Please don’t tell anybody how I feel about anything … unless I told you in the last few days.”The answer? It’s attempting nothing of the sort. The sole purpose of this book is to focus on the wild, incredible ups and downs of Cash’s spiritual journey. It’s a chronicle of his highs and lows, a record of the ebb and flow of his soul’s story.And like many such journeys, Cash’s was a roller coaster experience—though his twists and turns and plunges have been more intense than the average person’s … and, well, there were a lot more of them.Cash began life close to church, close to the earth, and close to gospel music; but his earliest singles for Sun Records hit the secular path rather than the gospel road he hoped Sam Phillips would let him follow; Phillips’ preference for the former led to big hits from Cash right from the start, and he immediately became a slave to the road, soon making millions of dollars and winning over millions of fans; he battled through a lot of death through the years—including his big brother Jack’s, his parents’, his longtime guitarist Luther Perkins’, and especially his wife of 35 years, June Carter Cash’s—but Cash somehow eluded the Grim Reaper’s snares despite feeding his frame with truckloads of uppers and downers over the better part of the 1960s; he enjoyed a creative and spiritual renaissance in the late ’60s and early ’70s, a run that not only sealed his status as the father of American music but proved a blueprint for what would soon become contemporary Christian music; and then, just when it appeared his career was sputtering to a halt in the late ’80s and early ’90s, Cash confounded everyone by becoming the “it” artist once again, boldly interpreting eclectic song mixtures that mined alternative rock and bygone standards.

And while his body suffered recently under the strain wrought by years of abuse, Cash’s mind stayed strong … and his spirit stayed stronger.

By Everette Hatcher III | Comments (0)

Video clips and pictures from the new film “42” and documentary of Jackie Robinson

March 29, 2013 – 12:49 pm

42 Interview – Chadwick Boseman (2013) – Jackie Robinson Movie HD

42 Trailer

42 Interview – Harrison Ford (2013) Jackie Robinson Movie HD

42 Official Trailer #2

You can find more movies and pictures from this link:

http://42movie.warnerbros.com/

’42′ Jackie Robinson Movie Releases New Images

Posted on March 22, 2013 by
42 Jackie Robinson
Great picture from new film.

42 Jackie RobinsonWarner Bros. just released their press materials for the upcoming biopic 42, Jackie Robinson’s story whowing his rise as the first major African American baseball superstar. It also showcases Brooklyn Dodgers’ general manager Branch Rickey’s brave stand against the prejudice of the nation and Robinson’s struggles to win over his teammates and the world.

In 1997, Major League Baseball retired Robinson’s jersey #42 and celebrate “Jackie Robinson Day” on April 15 of every year. 42 hits theaters three days before that celebration this year.

Director Brian Helgeland broke out as a screenwriter with the amazing L.A. Confidential in 1997 before making his directorial debut with the intense Mel Gibson thriller Payback and then following it up with the very fun A Knight’s Tale. His output has been lackluster since writing Man on Fire in 2004, so hopefully 42  will me a return to form for Helgeland.

42 stars Chadwick Boseman (The Express) as Jackie Robinson and Harrison Ford as Branch Rickey.

Here is the synopsis of 42:

Hero is a word we hear often in sports, but heroism is not always about achievements on the field of play. 42 tells the story of two men—the great Jackie Robinson and trailblazing Brooklyn Dodgers GM Branch Rickey—whose brave stand against prejudice forever changed the world by changing the game of baseball.

_____________________

That story is very inspiring, and let me tell you about someone in Arkansas who was inspired  by Robinson.

Recently I talked to Melvin Pickens who has been selling brooms in Little Rock for over 60 years. I have known Melvin for almost 30 years and I have always known that he is a big Los Angeles Dodgers fan. Then just the other day I asked him how he came around to pulling for the Dodgers. He told me that in 1947 when he was at Henry Clay Yerger High School in Hope, Arkansas, Branch Rickey (the general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers) stood up for Jackie Robinson and made him the first black baseball player to play professional baseball with the whites. (I actually learned that Jackie Robinson had played previously in Arkansas.)

Every person he knew at Henry Clay Yerger High School became a Dodger fan that year, and he has been a faithful fan ever since!!!

Melvin Pickens,

Jackie Robinson Sportscentury – 1 of 7

Jackie Robinson Sportscentury – 2 of 7

Jackie Robinson Sportscentury – 3 of 7

Jackie Robinson Sportscentury – 4 of 7

Jackie Robinson Sportscentury – 5 of 7

Jackie Robinson Sportscentury – 6 of 7

Jackie Robinson Sportscentury – 7 of 7

_____________________________________

Foto cortesía MLB
Jackie Robinson

______________________

By Everette Hatcher III | Comments (0)

Little Rock native David Hodges has song used in “Safe Haven” trailer

March 29, 2013 – 7:48 am

Christina Perri ‘Safe Haven’ Interview- New Album Coming!

Published on Feb 6, 2013

http://bit.ly/ClevverMusic – Subscribe to ClevverMusic!
We caught up with “Jar of Hearts” singer Christina Perri at the Safe Haven movie premiere where her song “Arms” is featured on the soundtrack. We chatted with her on the red carpet about the song, and about her upcoming album

Christina Perri – Arms (Live on Ellen DeGeneres 05-13-2011) [HD]

Uploaded on May 14, 2011

In July 2010, the struggling singer-songwriter named Christina Perri performed her defiant break-up anthem”Jar of Hearts” on “So You Think You Can Dance.” The raw, emotional quality of her performance connected with viewers and catapulted the 24-year-old Philadelphia native into the public eye.

_____________

merry little christmas! love, christina perri + david hodges

Uploaded on Dec 18, 2011

happy holidays and happy new year to everyone! i love you each. here’s to the best year yet in “the 12” 🙂 love, cp

___________________

 

Earlier I posted about Little Rock native David Hodges co-writing with Christina Perri on the song “For a thousand years” that was used in the Twilight movies and now their song “Arms” is being used for the trailer for the movie “Safe Haven.” I have posted several videos concerning this song and by the way my wife and I loved the movie SAFE HAVEN.

Below is a blog post by David Hodges from 2011 concerning this song.

Posted on May 13, 2011 by David

It’s been too long…

Hello all,
I’ve been spending most of the last few months keeping up with you guys through Twitter, but I thought I’d start updating on here more regularly so I could fill you in on what’s going on in more than 140 characters. This blog will let you know what i’ve been up to in the songwriting world in the last 12 months or so, and I’ll write another blog updating Avox, Arrows, & other stuff later…

This week has been amazing because Christina Perri’s album lovestrong came out on Tuesday (May 10). So far it’s stayed in the top 5 on iTunes & the reception for the album has been amazing. Christina & I started writing last fall, and the first song we wrote together (“Arms”) is now the single (after “Jar of Hearts”, which really blew up and put her on the map over the last 12 months)! I love how all the songs we wrote together (“Arms”, “Distance”, “The Lonely”, “Miles”, & “Interlude” – an instrumental piece that we did while tracking the record), as well as the rest of the album, turned out. I also join CP & her band to perform on Jimmy Kimmel (airs May 18) & Ellen (airs today, May 13), which was great. I really can’t say enough about CP as an artist & a person – so talented & gracious & honest & kind…I hope you guys love her album as much as I do.

___________

Related posts:

Little Rock native David Hodges wrote song for “Breaking Dawn Part 2″

David Hodges is a graduate of Arkansas Baptist High School in Little Rock and he co-wrote the song “A Thousand Years,”with Christina Perri. It was featured in the movie “Breaking Dawn Part 2.” David is one of the three founding members of Evanescence and he has written for Kelly Clarkson,  Celine Dion, Reba McEntire, Carrie Underwood, […]

Katharine McPhee’s hit song co-wrote by Little Rock native David Hodges

The “American Idol” contestant-turned-actress is getting positive reviews for her role in “Smash.” The singer plays an actress who is competing for the part of Marilyn Monroe in a Broadway show. The Hollywood Reporter calls it “‘Glee’ for grownups” and Entertainment Weekly calls McPhee “mediocre” but “very likable.” Great song: Uploaded by KatharineMcPheeVEVO on Nov […]

Little Rock native David Hodges co-wrote song for “Breaking Dawn” movie

Little Rock native and Arkansas Baptist High School graduate David Hodges co-wrote a song for the blockbuster movie “Breaking Dawn” that comes out this Friday. Interview: Breaking Dawn’s Christina Perri Twi’s Hard, Dreams Big       By Leah Collins, Dose.ca Nov 1, 2011   More Images »   OMG. Christina Perri went from a […]

Skillet is a Christian Heavy Metal Band from Memphis Part 3

Skillet – Awake and Alive Uploaded on Sep 27, 2010 I really have enjoyed reading about this band from Memphis. Skillet (band) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia   Jump to: navigation, search Skillet Skillet performing at a promotional acoustic show in Denton, TX in 2006 Background information Origin Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. Genres Rock,[1] Christian rock/metal,[2][3] […]

Skillet is a Christian Heavy Metal Band from Memphis Part 2

  Visit http://www.skillet.com for more information. Skillet – Hero (Video) Uploaded on Jun 28, 2010 © 2009 WMG no description available ____________ Great band from Memphis and I heard about them in the 1990′s but until today I had not looked into what they were doing. Here is an earlier post I did on them […]

Skillet is a Christian Heavy Metal Band from Memphis Part 1

Skillet – Monster (Video) Uploaded on Oct 2, 2009 © 2009 WMG Monster (Video) A good friend of our family told us back in the 1990′s that her cousin was part of a new group called Skillet and we had no idea that the group would grow into such a big national hit. The song […]

Otis Redding and Memphis “Music Monday”

(Sittin On) The Dock Of The Bay Uploaded by taylorgdaniel on Jun 9, 2010 Downtown Memphis, July 9, 2010, solo by Taylor G. Daniel of Germantown. This song was actually sung just a few miles away from where Redding originally recorded it in downtown Memphis at Stax Records. ______________________ Over the years Otis Redding’s influence […]

Otis Redding and Memphis “Music Monday”

(Sittin On) The Dock Of The Bay

By Everette Hatcher III | Tagged | Comments (0)

Debt Ceiling

March 29, 2013 – 12:51 am

This video belows shows how silly the federal government is when they pass “spending cuts.”

The problem in Washington is not lack of revenue but our lack of spending restraint. This video below makes that point.

The Overrated Debt Ceiling

Sometime in the next 30 to 60 days the federal government will reach the legal limit on its ability to borrow, setting up the next potential budget crisis in Washington. The debt is currently $16.4 trillion, technically in excess of the statutory limit, and the Treasury Department has been using “extraordinary measures,” such as delaying payments to federal retirement programs, in order to push back the final day of reckoning.

But Treasury’s ability to push off the deadline is almost spent, and unless Congress authorizes an increase in the debt limit, we will face yet another financial cliff. With Republicans in Congress calling for spending reductions as the price for increasing the debt limit, and President Obama insisting that he will not negotiate on the issue, we may soon be looking back on the fiscal-cliff deal as a model of relative comity.

Unfortunately, much of what we are being told about the debt limit and the upcoming fight is simply untrue. For example, President Obama warns that failing to increase the debt ceiling would “force the government to default on its obligations.” Not so.

There are two parts to the obligations subject to the debt ceiling: that part of the principal maturing during the time in question and the interest payments that the federal government must make on its debt. Between February 15 and March 15 of this year, the federal government will owe roughly $38.1 billion in interest payments. Failure to make those payments would indeed result in default. However, the federal government will also collect an estimated $277 billion in taxes and other revenue over that same period, meaning there will be more than enough money available to make those interest payments.

“Republicans can and should take a stand in the coming months.”

True, the federal government would not have enough revenue to continue spending the $452 billion that it otherwise would over that period. It would have to prioritize its expenditures until the debate was resolved. But there would be, for example, enough money to afford the interest on the debt, military salaries, Social Security, and Medicare, with at least $90 billion left over for other things.

As far as the principal goes, roughly $500 billion in debt will mature within the window between February 15 and March 15. Of course, the federal government does not actually pay off this debt (if it did, our debt would be going down rather than up) but rolls it over, substituting new debt for the maturing debt. As outgoing Treasury secretary Timothy Geithner testified in 2011, “Under normal circumstances, investors who hold Treasuries purchase new Treasury securities when the debt matures, permitting the United States to pay the principal on this maturing debt.” Since there is no net new debt as a result of the rollover, the new securities do not run afoul of the debt ceiling.

Theoretically, there could be a problem if no one is willing to buy the new securities. In that case, Treasury would not be able to issue a sufficient amount of new securities to pay for the securities that are maturing. However, unless the debate were to remain unresolved for an extremely prolonged period, there is no evidence that investors will be unwilling to buy U.S. debt in the short term.

More likely is the possibility that Treasury might have to offer higher interest rates on this rolled-over debt, a not insubstantial concern: A one-percentage-point increase in interest rates could cost taxpayers more than $100 billion per year. But to keep the situation in perspective, that amount is less than the $175 billion we will borrow from February 15 to March 15. Besides, if we are really worried about interest rates, what about the increased costs we can expect if we fail to get federal borrowing under control?

The president also claims that the debt-ceiling debate is about whether “Congress should pay the tab for a bill they’ve already racked up.” Wrong again.

As noted above, we are not actually paying the bills we’ve already run up but simply rolling over the borrowing on those bills and paying interest on our debts. Moreover, those bills amount to the $16.4 trillion we owe as of this month. Interest payments can also justifiably be considered part of past debts, and those payments will amount to roughly $220 billion this year. Even if we raised the debt ceiling to accommodate those interest payments — something that is not strictly necessary, as discussed above — that would mean a new debt ceiling of just $16.6 trillion for this year. The administration is seeking an increase to $18.5 trillion, which would theoretically allow borrowing through 2014.

The administration wants an increase in the debt ceiling beyond current debt and interest payments in order to accommodate additional spending and borrowing for this year and next. True, there is a certain element of hypocrisy to Congress’s appropriating money for this year and then refusing to carry out the borrowing necessary to pay for it. But there is nothing wrong with Congress’s forcing government not to spend money that it had planned on spending.

Finally, the president would have us believe that the debate over the debt ceiling is the unique product of Republican obstructionism. On Monday he asserted that Republicans are trying to “collect a ransom in exchange for not crashing the American economy.”

Even setting aside the president’s much-discussed vote against raising the debt ceiling when he was a senator, delays and conditions for raising the debt limit were relatively common and bipartisan well before the big fight of 2011. As far back as 1981, the New York Times was reporting, “Although the routine increase in the debt ceiling was essential to meet Government obligations already incurred, the vote is traditionally delayed to the 11th hour, with the minority party accusing the party in power of spendthrift ways”

In fact, the federal government actually did briefly default on its debt in 1979, in part as the result of a debt-ceiling impasse under a Democratic-controlled Congress. Since then, both Democratic and Republican Congresses have missed the deadline for debt-ceiling increases: briefly in 1981, three months in 1985, four and half months in 1996, and three months in 2002. And all sorts of conditions have been attached to debt-limit legislation. For example, in 1985, Congress added the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings spending limits to debt-limit legislation. The current impasse is hardly unprecedented.

Don’t get me wrong — failure to raise the debt limit would not be a good thing. Financial markets would likely react badly. We could even see another downgrade of the U.S.’s credit rating. Increased uncertainty would further slow economic growth. Unknown potential consequences abound.

But none of this would be worse than a failure to take meaningful action to reduce the debt, federal spending, and the growth of government. Indeed, if we want to see more credit downgrades, market turmoil, and slow growth, all we need do is continue on our present course.

By Everette Hatcher III | Comments (0)

Hogs schedule toughest in nation it looks like

March 28, 2013 – 12:55 pm

Arkansas Head Coach Bret Bielema Poses For A Picture With KEWI Owner Grant Merrill and Daughter Molly Before Appearing On Sports Night

Arkansas Head Coach Bret Bielema Poses For A Picture With KEWI Owner Grant Merrill and Daughter Molly Before Appearing On Sports Night (Picture from this link.)

I got to hear Bret Bielema speak at the Saline County Razorback Fish Fry on 3-27-13 and he said that he noticed that some had picked the Hog’s schedule as the toughest in the nation in 2013. He noted that some people think the Hogs should be scared because they have to take on 9 teams who went to bowls last year,  but Bielema said the way he looks at it is those other teams have to worry about playing the Razorbacks.

Here are some thoughts of Athlon sports:

Arkansas

Aug. 31 Louisiana-Lafayette
Sept. 7 Samford
Sept. 14 Southern Miss
Sept. 21 at Rutgers
Sept. 28 Texas A&M
Oct. 5 at Florida
Oct. 12 South Carolina
Oct. 19 at Alabama
Oct. 26 Bye Week
Nov. 2 Auburn
Nov. 9 at Ole Miss
Nov. 16 Bye Week
Nov. 23 Mississippi State
Nov. 30 at LSU

* Bret Bielema’s tenure in Fayetteville opens against a dangerous Louisiana-Lafayette team. The Ragin’ Cajuns are 18-8 over the last two years and return quarterback Terrance Broadway (3,616 total yards in 2012), along with running back Alonzo Harris.

* Arkansas will make its first trip to Rutgers in 2013. The Scarlet Knights defeated the Razorbacks 35-26 in Fayetteville last season.

* Arkansas and Texas A&M have played in each of the last four seasons but this will be their first meeting in Fayetteville since 1990. The Razorbacks own a 3-1 edge in the last four matchups against the Aggies.

* The Razorbacks face one of the toughest road schedules in the SEC, making trips to Florida, Alabama, Ole Miss and LSU. The Crimson Tide is heavily favored to win the SEC title in 2013, while the Gators and Tigers could each begin the year in the preseason top 10.

* Speaking of tough schedules…Arkansas might have one of the toughest four-game road stretches in college football next season. The Razorbacks play Texas A&M on Sept. 28, make a road trip to Gainesville on Oct. 5, then return home to play South Carolina, before finishing at Alabama on Oct. 19. Needless to say, Arkansas’ bye week on Oct. 26 will be a deserved break for the coaches and players.

* The SEC West should be college football’s toughest division in 2013 and if Arkansas wants to escape the cellar, it needs to take advantage of a schedule that features home swing games against Auburn and Mississippi State. 

Here is some thoughts on some teams from the SEC East:

Tennessee

Aug. 31 Austin Peay
Sept. 7 Western Kentucky
Sept. 14 at Oregon
Sept. 21 at Florida
Sept. 28 South Alabama
Oct. 5 Georgia
Oct. 12 Bye Week
Oct. 19 South Carolina
Oct. 26 at Alabama
Nov. 2 at Missouri
Nov. 9 Auburn
Nov. 16 Bye Week
Nov. 23 Vanderbilt
Nov. 30 at Kentucky

* Butch Jones should get an easy win behind his stellar offensive line in his debut. But a win over Bobby Petrino in Week 2 is much less of a sure thing. After the disappointing 2012 campaign, a 2-0 start would do wonders for a famished Big Orange fan base. A loss to a coach that many fans in Knoxville opined for during the extended UT coaching search would be downright devastating to an already crippled program.

* A 2-0 start is also extremely important due to back-to-back road trips to Oregon and Florida. Few teams will face two teams that went 23-3 a year ago on the road in consecutive weeks like the Vols will. Keeping the bloodshed to a minimum would be a moral victory for Jones. While his team is trying to stop Marcus Mariota and De’Anthony Thomas in Auzten Stadium, Will Muschamp’s team will be kicked up in their lazy boys during the off week licking their chops.

* There is no rest for the weary, either, as the month of October offers little comfort to the downtrodden program. Tennessee will face Georgia and South Carolina at home and Alabama in Tuscaloosa in a four-week span in October. The only comfort that month will be a much-needed bye week following the visit from the Bulldogs in Week 6.

* The Vols run at a potential bowl game will come following the Alabama game. It begins with a road trip to Missouri where revenge should be on the minds of the Big Orange players. A win in Columbia could kickstart a manageable final month of the season for Tennessee. Home games with Auburn and Vanderbilt are tricky but winnable, with at least a split is likely needed for a bowl berth. A win over Kentucky in Lexington in the season finale is a must if Jones wants to reach the postseason in his first season.

Georgia

Aug. 31 at Clemson
Sept. 7 South Carolina
Sept. 14 Bye Week
Sept. 21 North Texas
Sept. 28 LSU
Oct. 5 at Tennessee
Oct. 12 Missouri
Oct. 19 at Vanderbilt
Oct. 26 Open Date
Nov. 2 Florida (Jacksonville, Fla.)
Nov. 9 Appalachian State
Nov. 16 at Auburn
Nov. 23 Kentucky
Nov. 30 Georgia Tech

* Special moments are extremely difficult to overcome in college sports. Entire towns, fanbases and programs build hype and pour themselves into specific moments in time. South Carolina did it to Georgia last year and Clemson will have a chance in 2013 right out of the gate. This moment will be huge for the Tigers at home, as they have a chance to make it two in a row against the SEC. Tajh Boyd’s offense is filthy loaded and the Dawgs are breaking in eight new starters on defense. A loss does nothing to the Dawgs SEC title hopes but…

* Georgia’s national title hopes could hang in the balance in the first two weekends. South Carolina comes to town in Week 2 and a home game with LSU wraps up one of the toughest first months of play anywhere in the nation. This team will face three top 10 teams in the first five weeks. Should UGA defeat Clemson, a win in the home opener over the Gamecocks is likely. But should they slip-up in Death Valley, a win over South Carolina — a team that has hung 80 points on Georgia in the last two meetings — the next week seems highly unlikely. What happens in the first two weeks will determine the entire ’13 season for Mark Richt.

* After facing three elite teams in the first month, should Georgia leave September unbeaten (4-0), the rest of the nation better watch out. The remaining schedule features some intriguing road trips and one Outdoor Cocktail Party, but the Dawgs would likely be favored in every game the rest of the way.

* Like the Gators, Georgia too will get an extra week to prepare for the trip South to Jacksonville. The Bulldogs have won two straight over Florida but needed some tricky fourth-down gambles and one amazing forced fumble to win both of those games. It is good for the SEC and for the fans that both coaches and teams get two weeks to prepare for what could be the biggest game of the year in the SEC East.

* After the cocktail party, all bets are off for Richt and company. The Bulldogs will finish with three of their last four at home and all three should be easy wins. The lone road trip to Auburn will be the toughest game of the final four weeks, and while the Tigers should be improved, one has to assume UGA will be a heavy favorite over a team that lost nine games in 2012. The final month could simply be a tuneup for another meeting with Alabama in Atlanta.

By Everette Hatcher III | Comments (0)

Open letter to President Obama (Part 279)

March 27, 2013 – 5:49 am

Ronald Reagan Describes Milton Friedman

Uploaded by on Oct 2, 2011

_________

 

President Obama c/o The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President,

I know that you receive 20,000 letters a day and that you actually read 10 of them every day. I really do respect you for trying to get a pulse on what is going on out here.

Stephen Moore in the Wall Street Journal rightly noted:

In the 1960s, Friedman famously explained that “there’s no such thing as a free lunch.” If the government spends a dollar, that dollar has to come from producers and workers in the private economy.

Milton Friedman was my favorite economist and Ronald Reagan was my favorite President. I wish people would grasp the fact that there is no free lunch today. Here is a great article that described Milton Friedman. Ronald Reagan sought to put Friedman’s philosophy into practice in his eight years in office and as a result we had the biggest great in our economy in the history of our country. If you attempt to cut back on government spending and cut everyone’s taxes then you will be very successful too.

The Genius of Milton Friedman — Capitalism Preserved

Milton & Rose Friedman / Photo: Corbis

Four days ago, The Wall Street Journal published an outstanding article by Stephen Moore titled, The Man Who Saved Capitalism. One of the reasons President Reagan’s economic policies were so successful was because he relied upon the advice and wisdom of Milton Friedman. The entire article is worth reading. I am convinced liberals will never understand the genius of Friedman. If you ever want to have some fun, look up the numerous YouTubes of Friedman eviscerating the brightest of liberals. Here are some excerpts of Moore’s excellent article (also, see a great video at the WSJ URL):

It’s a tragedy that Milton Friedman—born 100 years ago on July 31—did not live long enough to combat the big-government ideas that have formed the core of Obamanomics. It’s perhaps more tragic that our current president, who attended the University of Chicago where Friedman taught for decades, never fell under the influence of the world’s greatest champion of the free market. Imagine how much better things would have turned out, for Mr. Obama and the country.

Friedman was a constant presence on these pages until his death in 2006 at age 94. If he could, he would surely be skewering today’s $5 trillion expansion of spending and debt to create growth—and exposing the confederacy of economic dunces urging more of it.

In the 1960s, Friedman famously explained that “there’s no such thing as a free lunch.” If the government spends a dollar, that dollar has to come from producers and workers in the private economy. There is no magical “multiplier effect” by taking from productive Peter and giving to unproductive Paul. As obvious as that insight seems, it keeps being put to the test. Obamanomics may be the most expensive failed experiment in free-lunch economics in American history.

Equally illogical is the superstition that government can create prosperity by having Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke print more dollars. In the very short term, Friedman proved, excess money fools people with an illusion of prosperity. But the market quickly catches on, and there is no boost in output, just higher prices.

. Small in stature but a giant intellect, he was the economist who saved capitalism by dismembering the ideas of central planning when most of academia was mesmerized by the creed of government as savior.
[…]
More influential than Friedman’s scholarly writings was his singular talent for communicating the virtues of the free market to a mass audience. His two best-selling books, “Capitalism and Freedom” (1962) and “Free to Choose” (1980), are still wildly popular. His videos on YouTube on issues like the morality of capitalism are brilliant and timeless.

In the early 1990s, Friedman visited poverty-stricken Mexico City for a Cato Institute forum. I remember the swirling controversy ginned up by the media and Mexico’s intelligentsia: How dare this apostle of free-market economics be given a public forum to speak to Mexican citizens about his “outdated” ideas? Yet when Milton arrived in Mexico he received a hero’s welcome as thousands of business owners, students and citizen activists hungry for his message encircled him everywhere he went, much like crowds for a modern rock star.

Once in the early 1960s, Friedman wrote the then-U.S. ambassador to New Delhi, John Kenneth Galbraith, that he would be lecturing in India. By all means come, the witty but often wrong Galbraith replied: “I can think of nowhere your free-market ideas can do less harm than in India.” As fate would have it, India did begin to embrace Friedmanism in the 1990s, and the economy began to soar. China finally caught on too.

Friedman stood unfailingly and heroically with the little guy against the state. He used to marvel that the intellectual left, which claims to espouse “power to the people,” so often cheers as states suppress individual rights.
[…]
He loved turning the intellectual tables on liberals by making the case that regulation often does more harm than good. His favorite example was the Food and Drug Administration, whose regulations routinely delay the introduction of lifesaving drugs. “When the FDA boasts a new drug will save 10,000 lives a year,” he would ask, “how many lives were lost because it didn’t let the drug on the market last year?”

He supported drug legalization (much to the dismay of supporters on the right) and was particularly proud to be an influential voice in ending the military draft in the 1970s. When his critics argued that he favored a military of mercenaries, he would retort: “If you insist on calling our volunteer soldiers ‘mercenaries,’ I will call those who you want drafted into service involuntarily ‘slaves.'”

By the way, he rarely got angry and even when he was intellectually slicing and dicing his sparring partners he almost always did it with a smile. It used to be said that over the decades at the University of Chicago and across the globe, the only one who ever defeated him in a debate was his beloved wife and co-author Rose Friedman.

The issue he devoted most of his later years to was school choice for all parents, and his Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice is dedicated to that cause. He used to lament that “we allow the market, consumer choice and competition to work in nearly every industry except for the one that may matter most: education.”

As for congressional Republicans who are at risk of getting suckered into a tax-hike budget deal, they may want to remember another Milton Friedman adage: “Higher taxes never reduce the deficit. Governments spend whatever they take in and then whatever they can get away with.”

No doubt because of his continued popularity, the left has tried to tie Friedman and his principles of free trade, low tax rates and deregulation to the global financial meltdown in 2008. Economist Joseph Stiglitz charged that Friedman’s “Chicago School bears the blame for providing a seeming intellectual foundation” for the “idea that markets are self-adjusting and the best role for government is to do nothing.” Occupy Wall Street protesters were often seen wearing T-shirts which read: “Milton Friedman: Proud Father of Global Misery.”

The opposite is true: Friedman opposed the government spending spree in the 2000s. He hated the government-sponsored enterprises like housing lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

In a recent tribute to Friedman in the Journal of Economic Literature, Harvard’s Andrei Shleifer describes 1980-2005 as “The Age of Milton Friedman,” an era that “witnessed remarkable progress of mankind. As the world embraced free-market policies, living standards rose sharply while life expectancy, educational attainment, and democracy improved and absolute poverty declined.”

Well over 200 million were liberated from poverty thanks to the rediscovery of the free market. And now as the world teeters close to another recession, leaders need to urgently rediscover Friedman’s ideas.

I remember asking Milton, a year or so before his death, during one of our semiannual dinners in downtown San Francisco: What can we do to make America more prosperous? “Three things,” he replied instantly. “Promote free trade, school choice for all children, and cut government spending.”

How much should we cut? “As much as possible.”

_________

Thank you so much for your time. I know how valuable it is. I also appreciate the fine family that you have and your commitment as a father and a husband.

Sincerely,

Everette Hatcher III, 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002, ph 501-920-5733, lowcostsqueegees@yahoo.com

By Everette Hatcher III | Also posted in President Obama, Taxes | Comments (0)

“Woody Wednesday” Woody Allen video interview in France talk about making movies in Paris vs NY and other subjects like God, etc

March 27, 2013 – 12:48 am

Woody Allen video interview in France

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CPAC 2013 videos part 2

March 26, 2013 – 7:10 am

CPAC 2013 – U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH)

Former Governor Mitt Romney (Intro by Gov. Nikki Haley)

CPAC 2013 – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

CPAC 2013 – “Smartest Guys in the Room” Panel

Published on Mar 16, 2013

John Allison,President and Chief Executive Officer,Cato Institute
Arthur Brooks, President, AMerican Enterprise Institute
Dr. Edwin Feulner, President The Heritage Foundation
Moderator: Lawson Bader, President, Competitive Enterprise

______________

CPAC 2013 – Former U.S. Representative Artur Davis

CPAC 2013 – Phyllis Schlafy, Founder, Eagle Forum (Emcee: Steven Crowder)

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By Everette Hatcher III | Comments (0)