Common Sense Ain't So Common

Our great republic is on track to be doomed. At a minimum, if we do not pull our collective heads out of the hole, we are doomed. There was a time when people prided themselves on common sense. Today, not so much. It seems the more stupid, ignorant and blind to reality people are, the happy the world seems to be to them. No matter what people want to think or believe, in this world there are still obvious rights and wrongs. Shades of gray exist for sure but I hate (not really) to burst some bubbles but I have no problem looking someone in the face and saying, “Uh, nope. You are wrong.” Appeasing ignorance is in itself ignorance. Winston Churchill once said that people try to appease the alligator hoping it will eat them last. True. But here we sit in 2024 watching the raging stupidity across this country and indeed the entire world.

1. The Border: Broken record time, again. It is an unsustainable travesty. Anyone with half a brain can see that. Many choose not to. There is a saying that “there is no one so blind as he who will not see.” People simply do not want to see what is going on at the southern border. But guess what, the rate of illegal aliens (not migrants) entering from the northern border has increased exponentially as well. Does anybody in power really care? Not many. And here is one place where we can clearly see a difference in party politics. One party is for a closed and secure border while the other is only concerned with the destruction of this country. What else would you call it?

Since Joe Biden has come into office, he has allowed 7.2 million illegal immigrants to enter the US. That number is greater than the population of 35 states. This number clearly does not include those who simply entered unnoticed. There was a time when the rallying cry was that the Mexican migrants only wanted a better life. That is another issue and not a reason for asylum. But what of the people from the other 160 or so countries that are breaking into our country every day? Why in fiscal 2023 year did we have over 24,000 illegals from China? China, people. Two years earlier, we only had 450 total. That is just a single day total in the San Diego sector now.

I watched a news clip and they were asking these people where they were from and there answers were from all over the globe. But they just want a better life, right? Let’s ignore the governments responsibility for a better life among its own citizens. Several cities have already cut services to “American citizens” in order to accommodate the flood of illegals. Does anybody think this is acceptable? Some New York and Massachusetts law makers are asking for citizens to allow these illegal immigrants to stay in their homes. Only after the Governor’s mansion is filled to the brim with them and to be honest, not even then. Absolutely not! That falls under the category of “not my circus, not my monkey.” What arrogant blowhards they are. Again, it is beautiful to see these people squirming after having to eat the poop sandwich they created.

To me, there is no other issue threatening this country that is greater than illegal immigration. Why? Because absolutely every other facet of our society is impacted by it. Here is a cold reality, no border, no country. It is that simple. Crime, disease, shortages in stores, social services, national security threats, you name it. Most if not all are already here. Sadly, few are willing to do anything about it. The only thing President Biden is willing to offer lately is to blame Republicans for his failures and to threaten executive orders just in time for a new election. The level of “undocumented Democrats” is increasing daily. The ultimate issue is that now, in order to right the wrong, extreme measures will have to be employed. Nobody wants that but do you think any of these people are going to go quietly into the night? Yes, we have a real problem.

2. Government cancels another $1.2 billion in student loan debt. Am I really supposed to pay for your student load? Did your parents pay for mine? Nuff’ said.

3. Our National Debt: Way back in 2013, I wrote about our national debt. Back then, our debt was a modest $16,744,756,296,931. This was according to usdebtclock.org. When I logged on this morning, 22 February, it had grown to $34,281,880,454,129 and is growing by the second. Yes, it has more than doubled since 2013, Here are some numbers to ponder.

- 1 trillion seconds equals 31,709 years (1 million seconds equals approximately 11.5 days)

- If our national debt in dollars was miles (34 trillion plus) and with light traveling at 186,000 miles per second, it would take light 5.8 years to cover that distance.

I recommend going to the debt clock and looking at all the numbers. It is pretty humbling. I do not believe the average American has any idea of how big $34 trillion is. To most, it is just a number. Much like paying an athlete $55 million a year. I am not saying he/she is not worth it but I do not think the average sports fan has a good handle on how much that is considering the average salary in the US in the fourth quarter of 2023 was $59,384. That means the average American would have to work 926 years to make as much as this athlete makes in a single year. Again, I am not begrudging this salary but just putting it in perspective.

As Americans, it seems as though we do not care about numbers. 7 million illegals, oh well. Student loans? Why not help them out? Our national debt? Just print some more money. Need more money? Just raise more taxes. Instead of doing the unthinkable and reducing government spending, most lawmakers seem content to let this country drown in debt and mismanagement. Imagine what the government, the IRS debt collectors would do if every single year you earned $100,000 but spent $200,000.

I am not a doom and gloom guy. But I am definitely a card-carrying Sun Tzu Art of War kind of guy. I firmly believe that we must know our enemies. Know them well and expect the worst. Plan for it. The real world is not the place for your head to buried in the sand like the cartoon ostrich. I actively find myself trying not to get mad. It does nothing for you. It is a challenge for me because I am human. James 1:20 tells me that the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God. Let’s call this a work in progress.

Regardless. Although I try not to rage and get too angry with what I see, I still recognize what is out there and do not ignore it. I can’t ignore. None of us should. But I do pray for our leaders to make righteous decisions concerning this country. Sometimes that is the best we can do. Sometimes that is actually all that we need to do.

PSA – Airshow at Maxwell AFB 6 and 7 April. The Navy Blue Angels will be making their first stop to the river region in decades. See ya’ll there.