Something To Think About Archive

While it’s a long way from the Mother Lode, the front-runner for New York City Mayor represents a real concern for political leadership in the U.S.

Mamdani’s stand as a self-proclaimed Socialist is bad enough, but his use of the slogan “Globalize the Intifada” in the past is deeply disturbing. He recently pledged to stop using it. That’s great, but the question is: Does he still believe in it and it’s equally abhorrent racist cousin “From the River to the Sea” calling for the elimination of the Jewish State?

It’s been said that “Fires can’t be made with dead embers.”

George Washington Carver said: “Do the common things of life in an uncommon way.”

Elvis advised us to “Do something worth remembering.”

According to Oprah Winfrey: “Often intuition will direct you. If it feels right, it’s probably right.”

Fredrick Douglass said: “If there is no struggle, there is no progress.”

Ranked Choice Voting delivered a victory to an avowed Socialist in New York City’s mayoral election and has created near-chaos in Alaska, one of two states to use it, the other being uber-liberal Maine. Let’s hope that this ridiculous way of eliminating candidates in a primary is never brought to California state-wide elections and, if put on the ballot, is defeated as it was in Nevada.

“Experience is something you don’t get until just after you need it.”

Singer-songwriter James Taylor says “The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time.”

Remember that “The sooner you fall behind, the more time you’ll have to catch up.”

According to author Anne Holm, “When there’s no one else to do things for you, you must do them for yourself.”

It’s been said that “For every action, there is an equal and opposite criticism.”

Today, the federal deficit is nine times higher than it was in 1996. The federal debt is four times as high and welfare spending is nearly three times what it was in 1996. Meanwhile, the welfare “reform” in the current budget bill requires only 20 hours of work per week for able-bodied persons to receive benefits under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. While the 1996 legislation signed by Bill Clinton, required 30 hours of work per week. Like current levels of Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security spending, it’s a necessary but unsustainable program at this level.

English writer Jerome K. Jerome once noted that “I like work; it fascinates me. I can sit and look at it for hours.”

According to writer Harper Lee, “People see what they look for and hear what they listen for.”

Author J.M. Barrie claimed that “Life is a long lesson in humility.”

The late singer-songwriter Brian Wilson once observed that “Genius is a big word. But if you have to live up to something, you might as well live up to that.”

The Father of Hungarian democracy Louis Kossuth said: “It is surmounting difficulties that makes heroes.”

Here are some fun facts: Delaware led the nation in federal tax revenue per person at $24,575 per resident in 2023, followed by Massachusetts at $21,747 and Minnesota at $20,728. Mississippi and New Mexico were at the bottom at around $6,000. Washington D.C., home to all those laboring in, with and for government, contributed $54,612 in federal tax revenue per resident — more than double any state.

It’s been said that “The world needs unbending courageous people. It needs people who day to day do what’s right – not what’s expedient. It needs people who are not afraid to lose their position, not people who will do anything to keep it.”