What am I doing?

What am I DOING besides complaining?

Very good question, and thought provoking too. Let's see:

1. Read as much information as possible, including re-reading the U.S. Constitution
2. Share information with family, friends, and colleagues
3. Write letters to Senators and Congressman
4. Participate in neighborhood caucuses - I was elected as a State Delegate
5. Participated in countywide Tea Party
6. Serve on advisory committee to County Commission
7. Regularly testify before Public Service Commission
8. Regularly meet with local representatives of our Washington delegation
9. Donate money and time to state-wide and national lobbying organization
10. Vote in every election

Short of armed insurrection, I don't know what else to do.

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT

As I was driving in to work this morning, the president was speaking at the National Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting and it was being carried live on the radio. My commute is thankfully short so I only heard a portion of his speech, but what I heard was very troubling. Among other things he said:

"Today, of course, we face more complex challenges than we have ever faced before: a medical system that holds the promise of unlocking new cures and treatments -- attached to a health care system that holds the potential for bankruptcy to families and businesses; a system of energy that powers our economy, but simultaneously endangers our planet;" (You can read all of his speech at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Remarks-by-the-President-at-the-National-Academy-of-Sciences-Annual-Meeting/)

What this, along with his other speeches and the bills currently in congress, tells me is that this president has set his sights on not only nationalizing (and thereby ruining) our health care system, but also our whole energy industry. I personally only work in the electricity industry, but I’m sure that engineers in the oil and gas industries heard the same thing I did. I’ve got to say that, after more than a decade of working in the power industry overseas and in many countries with nationalized power companies (see the attached photo of the government power system in the DR), if the government takes over the energy industry we’ll learn what it’s like to do without – the same as they do in those distant third-world countries. No government on Earth has ever yet run a successful healthcare system, energy system, or any industry for that matter (check out the former Soviet Union.) I have to wonder, how far are we going to let this go? Beyond the point of no return?

aRe We rEady?

I bought this kit a while back, but finally got around to assembling the parts – see the attached photo - and there were a lot of little parts. This will make a nice addition to my small collection (less than 10) of personal firearms. So, “aRe We rEady”? (RWE)

What does "RWE" mean, I've been asked? Let me ask you:

Are you opposed to illegal immigration? Do you oppose abortion of live babies? Are you a veteran of the U.S. Military? Do you support the 2nd amendment? Are you stocking up on guns and ammo? Do you stockpile food? Do you believe in a strict and literal interpretation of the constitution? Do you believe that the American Constitution was inspired by God? Are you a Christian? Are you clinging to your religion? Do you feel like our government is spending too much and will consequently have to tax us to death? Did you attend a Tea Party on Tax Day?

If so, then you too may be an "RWE" or “Right Wing Extremist” according to our Department of Homeland Security, as detailed in a memo released on April 15th to all of the law enforcement agencies in the country. And whereas Arizona’s former governor Napolitano has ruled out the use of the word “terrorist” when referring to people who are suicide bombers or attack innocent civilians, she was quick to apply it to nearly every Conservative/Republican (except the turncoats John McCain, Jon Huntsman, and Colin Powell) in the United States.

Didn’t you get the memo? If you want to read it, you can see it for yourself at: http://www.fas.org/irp/eprint/rightwing.pdf

Chile Santiago South Mission reunion

On Friday I took the day off from work to go up to my mission reunion. A group of former missionaries from my mission live in Idaho near our old Mission President and they decided to get us all together for one last reunion, thinking our old president won’t be around for too many more years. So Friday morning I took the day off and drove up to Layton, north of Salt Lake City. It was nice and warm in St. George when I gassed up, but it was raining just north of town, and starting at Cedar City it was snowing. It snowed all the way to Provo, which cost me an extra hour of travel, so I got to the reunion an hour later than planned.

It was kind of funny: I pulled into the parking lot and saw some old folks walking into the Stake Center and assumed that either I was in the wrong place or they were holding a funeral in the same building. Actually it was neither – those fat old bald folks were just my former mission companions. Oops. But it was a ton of fun getting together and chatting the day away, reminiscing about funny old stories and catching up on what everyone has done since coming home. I won’t bore you with the whole story – I’ve written three pages on the subject in my own journal. The attached photo is of me and my last companion, along with members of our zone at the end of our mission.

That night after the reunion (we left at 11:30PM) I took up one of my former companions on his offer to stay the night with him at his summer home in Park City. I’m glad I took the 4-Runner because it was snowing like crazy in Park City and my old companion’s house is built on the side of a mountain, mixed in with the ski runs, so I needed my 4WD. We stayed up chatting until 2AM, so we slept in a bit on Saturday. I stayed long enough to see the morning session of General Conference, had breakfast, and then headed south. In the afternoon session of General Conference, when they named the new General Authorities, they called one of the former missionaries from my old mission, who just got home after serving as president of our old mission, to be an Area Authority Seventy. That’s pretty wild, I’ve got to say. He must be MUCH older than me (although the Church website lists him as only 48.)

And speaking of General Conference, the talks were all very good, as usual. I’m always impressed by how positive and upbeat our leaders are, no matter how dark and dreary the world is being this year. I especially enjoyed Elder Allan F. Packer’s talk on hearing and following the Spirit. In the Priesthood session Elder Uchtdorf gave a wonderful talk – I think he may be developing into my new favorite speaker – his Sunday morning talk was very good also.