As a junior in high school in 1970 I bought my first car, a 64’ Pontiac GTO. It will always be my favorite. Since then I’ve owned many General Motors vehicles, including a 1975 Chevy Camaro, a 1985 Chevy 1/2 ton Scottsdale, a 1990 GMC 4-wheel drive Sierra, a 2003 GMC 4-wheel drive Canyon, and most recently a 2008 GMC 4-wheel drive crew cab Sierra. My wife has also owned several GM vehicles over the years.

It’s sad to say but my 2008 Sierra will be my last GM vehicle. I don’t believe the federal government should be in the business of making cars. I don’t believe they should be in any kind of business at all. They’re not good at making practical business decisions. They’re only good at injecting politics into business decisions and spending (wasting) taxpayer money on these businesses (bailouts). In the case of Chrysler, giving unions priority over bondholders and a majority stake in the new company is a perfect example. The union is now both management AND labor. Is that going to work? NO.  

How does Ford now compete with Government Motors? Ford files its corporate taxes with the federal government and must comply with government rules and regulations. As such, the government will have a distinct advantage in knowing its competitors inner workings. The government can then dictate to Ford policies that will make Ford less competitive, and force them into bankruptcy protection (government involvement). It sets a dangerous precedence when the government becomes your competitor. Whole industries will soon be under direct government control.

How do we stop this government takeover of the private sector? We start by not participating. I bought my last GM vehicle last year—I’m now a FORD man.    

Jeff Jorgensen

Treynor, IA

Former Vice President Dick Cheney is smart, articulate, and knows his stuff. I still remember the two Vice Presidential debates in which he participated. With his straight forward, quick witted, no-nonsense debating style he easily won these debates with opponents Joe Lieberman and John Edwards. The fact that the Main Stream Media scored it different is proof of their bias, and their fears.

And now Mr. Cheney is taking on President Obama. A review of the two speeches last week that has everyone abuzz reveals the former Vice President is someone who can still maintain command of an audience with articulate oratory while the President is aloof and naïve and has to rely on teleprompters to be effective. I scored it Cheney 1 and Obama 0.

As a Republican, it’s our miss fortune that Dick Cheney never ran for President. He would have been a great one. Thank God, though, he’s still center stage in the public debate surrounding national security and the issues that confront us today. Right now, America can use a man with Dick Cheney’s talents—he speaks truth to idiots.

Jeff Jorgensen

Treynor, IA

The ‘leftie’ blogs and the ‘Main Stream Media’ are currently saturated, indeed wringing wet, with articles and commentaries pointing out the recent turn of events (Arlen Spector, Colin Powell, etc…) as proof the Republican Party is in disarray and on the decline. As for me, I respectfully disagree. I say to those RINO’s contemplating similar moves, “So long, farewell, Auf wiedersehen, goodbye!”, and, “don’t let the door hit ya’ where the Good Lord split ya’.” I say to the Republicans, not since Ronald Reagan have we been given the opportunity to draw such a distinct contrast to the philosophical and moral differences we have with Democrats. By all means, let’s take advantage of this opportunity.  

Let’s begin by standing on the principals of American exceptionalism. Let’s reaffirm our priorities of strong national defense, conservative fiscal restraint, defense of the defenseless, family friendly policies and family values, and effective, efficient, lean government as opposed to just ‘bigger’ government. As a former Democrat, these are the principals that drew me to the Republican Party, and these are the principals that will drive more Americans to the Republican Party as they renew their faith in America.

Obama is a personality; and the cult of personality will fail, mark my words. But what Obama has given us as Republicans is clarity, and a clear road to victory. With clarity comes purpose; election victories will follow—guaranteed.

Jeff Jorgensen

Treynor, IA

Update – Look Who Else is Snooping on My Website. More Government Snoops!!!

On April 26^th I posted an article on Redstate.com about the Department of Homeland Security crawling all over my web site after I attended a local Council Bluffs, IA Tea Party. Since then I’ve had more snoops. I just thought I’d update you all on the latest—just incase I should unexpectedly disappear. These are the latest snoop hits as of April 29^th. I included a link to the first hit. This group appears to be under direct command of the President. Did I open up a can of worms or what?

Link to first hit:  http://www.hanscom.af.mil/library/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=5568

Jeff Jorgensen

Treynor IA

The Department of Homeland Security has a corporate IP address of 216.81.80.134 and is located in Springfield, Virginia—area code 703. The coordinates of this location are latitude 38.7438, longitude -77.2333. How do I know this? Well, let me give you a little background information and then we’ll connect the dots.

I have a web site I use to sell a product that I invented and patented. The product is basically an educational tool. My biggest market is college students enrolled in a technical or engineering program. I also sell this product through an association of college bookstores. As an educational tool, my product is totally 100% guaranteed harmless. If you Google my name and the words “graph paper”, you’ll find my web site.

On April 15^th I attended the Council Bluffs, IA “Tea Party” Tax Day protest. I emailed the event organizer the day before that I would be attending the “Tea Party”, along with several fellow co-workers. I got the organizers name and email address through the website theglennbeck912project.com. I was a little hesitant to go at first since I’m not one for protesting, but in the final analysis it was a wonderful experience.

Enough with the background, now let’s connect the dots. On April 18^th, two days after the tea party protests, I was checking traffic on my website. I always do reverse IP traces on major hits to see where they are originating so I can evaluate the effectiveness of my marketing strategy. As I checked one particular large hit, I was stunned to see the following on my screen,

Hostname:                    216.81.80.134

ISP:                              Department of Homeland Security

Organization:                Department of Homeland Security

Type:                            Corporate

Country:                       United States

State/Region:                VA

City:                             Springfield

Latitude:                       38.7438

Longitude:                    -77.2333

Area Code:                  703

When I told my wife about my find, she seemed to dismiss it and suggested that they may have been interested in making a purchase. I checked my PayPal account and noted no orders had been processed that day for the Department of Homeland Security. Is this just a coincidence? The answer is NO. My full name is not on my website. Someone had to actively search to make the connection.

I am a Marine Corp veteran, I do practice my religious faith, I do own a shotgun, and I did attend the Council Bluffs, IA “Tea Party” on April 15^th. Now I feel I am on the Department of Homeland Security’s watch list of possible terrorists. They appear to have been monitoring the emails of the Tea Party contact organizers. Who and what else are they monitoring?

These are the facts; I’ll leave it up to you to decide what actions you may want to take if you attended a tea party. As for me, I’ve already contacted my congressman to vehemently lodge my complaint.

Jeff Jorgensen

Treynor, IA

This is in response to the April 20^th rebuttal to my April 15^th letter to the Omaha World-Herald’s Public Pulse railing against gay marriage in Iowa.

Dear Sir:

I don’t care what two or more people do behind closed doors. It does not concern me. What I am tired of, though, is gay activists continually shoving the gay agenda down my throat.

It is now legal for gay couples to marry in Iowa. This came about not by majority vote or popular demand, but by seven un-elected Iowa Supreme Court judges. The Democratic controlled Iowa legislature refuses to allow a popular vote on this issue. In other words, the Iowa legislature is now stepping on my personal faith, trashing my religious values, and denying me a chance to voice my opposition.

I don’t accept homosexuality as a norm to be promoted in schools and protected by special legislation—it is a sin. I prefer schools teach reading and writing, not sexual preferences and alternative lifestyles. I prefer we all be equal under the law, not some being more equal than others. If two or more homosexuals want to form a civil union or unions, far be it from me to stop them. Just don’t call it marriage and force me to recognize their sin.

Jeff Jorgensen

Treynor, Iowa

What is it about Iowa Democrats that they tend toward ultra-liberalism? I recently ran into an old high school classmate of mine, a staunch Democrat whose uncle was a very prominent Democratic state senator. The talk quickly turned to politics and the current State Supreme Court ruling on gay marriage.

I told her I thought homosexuality was deviant, perverted sexual behavior. I also said it was a sin. She immediately took umbrage with my statement and said I was being a judgmental religious zealot on this issue. I then asked if she whole-heartedly approved of same sex marriage, what other marital unions would she approve.

Would she approve of a brother and sister getting married? With disgust, she said no. Why, for genetic reasons and the effects of inbreeding. OK, how about two brothers getting married, or two sisters? How about multiple people getting married, or a man marrying his dog? Would she approve of these unions? She didn’t say a word, but the look of disdain on her face told me the conversation was over. As she turned and walked away, I gleefully said with a stern rebuke, “Look who’s being judgmental now.”

Marriage is between a man and a woman. It is not sanctified by the state, it is sanctified by God. No man-made law or social mores is going to change that. Once a society takes the right of sanctifying marriage away from God and assumes that right for itself, that society quickly devolves into decadence and chaos—which seems to be the order of the day for today’s Democratic Party.

Jeff Jorgensen

The first one-hundred days of the Obama Presidency is proving to be a very raucous, anxiety driven affair. As we struggle with events in the market and on the world stage, I’m reminded of another anxious time in our nation’s history and another charismatic first term President—Ronald Reagan.

Governor Reagan rose to national prominence in 1976, after challenging then President Gerald Ford for the Republican Party Presidential nomination. Reagan, a staunch conservative, lost to Ford, a moderate Republican and Nixon appointee, in a hard fought primary campaign. Reagan, however, gained considerable stature within the party after Ford lost the general election to Democratic Governor Jimmy Carter.

As a political novice, Jimmy Carter was the metaphorical breath of fresh air to a troubled nation. He was the change America so desperately yearned for after years of war, civil unrest, and political scandal. In the end, what we needed and what we got were two totally different things.

I still have vivid memories of Jimmy Carter’s presidency. These memories include 18% interest rates, economic stagflation, Olympic boycotts, and a new late night news program called Nightline that gave us continuous coverage of the Iran hostage crisis. Four years of insecurity, indecision, inept foreign and domestic policy, and presidential malaise proved to be Carter’s undoing. Jimmy Carter simply became overwhelmed by the course of events. By the time the 1980 presidential elections rolled around, we were looking for something much more profound then change. We were looking for leadership. The rest is history.

As President Obama takes office, I wish him well. I hope and pray his mantra for change can deliver us from this economic catastrophe and give us renewed peace and prosperity. However, if the “change” mantra should fail to deliver and another novice President becomes overwhelmed by the course of events, the eyes of a nation will be looking forward to the 2012 presidential elections—and scanning the political horizon for Ronald Reagan incarnate.  

Jeff Jorgensen

jorgie714@frontiernet.net             

Stimulus money already appears to be working its way down to the local level in Iowa. How do I know this? A friend of mine, a soil conservationist with the USDA, had four days to come up with a plan to spend 1.6 million dollars, and spend it fast. His plan—trimming trees. Yes, the stimulus we are all counting on to lift our economy out of the abyss and propel us to new heights of economic prosperity now includes tree haircuts as a priority.

If you multiply this scenario by the hundreds of thousands, you get an idea of the enormous logistics problem government bureaucrats are having with the stimulus plan. They need to become “super” creative in finding ways to spend hundreds of billions of  dollars. Not that they have a problem with spending. The “double” whammy is they are now required to find ways to spend more money, and spend it faster.

We are putting our future, and our country, at risk with this kind of spending. It appears as more money is spent (wasted) on countless bailouts and economic stimulus plans, less money will be spent on national defense priorities. I have no doubt hostile governments are already assessing these new opportunities and developing plans of their own, waiting for events to happen that will advance their cause. Before long, they will be putting these plans into action, and they too will be moving at a faster pace.

For me, there is no doubt about the outcome if we continue on our current path. We are headed for a downfall of historic proportions. Future historians will inevitably compare America’s last days with that of the Roman Empire, and the debate will be whether America’s final destruction originated from internal forces within the “Great Society” or external forces from without. In my opinion, it was both.  

Jeff Jorgensen

As spiritual beings, we all have the ability to peer into the future. We get that sense of future events not by contemplating the secular outcome of current world events, but by envisioning the outcome of world events as they are revealed to us in our spiritual quest. As spiritual beings, God has allowed us entry into the higher plane of “spiritual” reality, a place where creativity originates, imagination flows, and ideas are born to bear fruit in the real world. It is also the place where the future plays out.

My current sense of the future does not bode well for the Obama agenda. For instance, I do not have a sense of excitement and confidence about the so-called stimulus package recently passed by Congress. I do have a sense of anxiety and pessimism. I sense we are not on the road to recovery, but on a dead end road headed for a washed out bridge. Whatever road we’re on, Obama has indicated that the road will be long and arduous, and that more stimuli (spending) may (will) be needed to keep us heading in the right direction.  

My instinct for economic survival and my lifetime of experience concurs with my spiritual sense of anxiety and pessimism—we are not heading in the right direction. That still small voice keeps sounding the alarm in my ear, “You can’t spend your way to prosperity”. Deep down inside most Democrats sense it, for they too hear that still small voice. They just deny what their spiritual sense is telling them.

Obama hasn’t been in office a month, but already his proposed policy initiatives are causing great consternation. Millions of Americans are sensing the pending chaos and calamity on our economic prosperity, national security, and the American way of life. The great advantage to sensing “spiritual” reality is that it doesn’t have to become real. God gives us the ability to peer into the future so that we may change course, if need be, to arrive safely at our destination. The course of pending chaos and calamity need not be our future if we all raise our voices and sound the alarm.

Jeff Jorgensen