Minimum Wage: A Parable

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employment, fairness, labor unions, minimum wage, negotiations, unemployment, wage, work

“God’s kingdom is like an estate manager who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. They agreed on a wage of a dollar a day, and went to work.

“Later, about nine o’clock, the manager saw some other men hanging around the town square unemployed. He told them to go to work in his vineyard and he would pay them a fair wage. They went.

“He did the same thing at noon, and again at three o’clock. At five o’clock he went back and found still others standing around. He said, ‘Why are you standing around all day doing nothing?’

“They said, ‘Because no one hired us.’

“He told them to go to work in his vineyard.

“When the day’s work was over, the owner of the vineyard instructed his foreman, ‘Call the workers in and pay them their wages. Start with the last hired and go on to the first.’

“Those hired at five o’clock came up and were each given a dollar. When those who were hired first saw that, they assumed they would get far more. But they got the same, each of them one dollar. Taking the dollar, they groused angrily to the manager, ‘These last workers put in only one easy hour, and you just made them equal to us, who slaved all day under a scorching sun.’

“He replied to the one speaking for the rest, ‘Friend, I haven’t been unfair. We agreed on the wage of a dollar, didn’t we? So take it and go. I decided to give to the one who came last the same as you. Can’t I do what I want with my own money? Are you going to get stingy because I am generous?’

“Here it is again, the Great Reversal: many of the first ending up last, and the last first.”

“And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
Colossians 3:17

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Amnesty’s Second Wind

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amnesty, citizenship, education, emplyment, fairness, heathcare, jobs, obamacare, unemployment

Supporters of a higher minimum wage demonstrated outside a McDonald’s in Detroit. Published: July 31, 2013

By Arnold Ahlert
Why conservatives may be more vulnerable than ever to persuasion.

“America remains mired in the weakest recovery since WWII. The unemployment rate of 7.4 percent obscures the reality that we have the lowest workforce participation rate since 1978, 75 percent of the jobs created in 2013 are part-time with lower wage levels, and American incomes have declined 4.4 percent since the recovery began in 2009. In short, Americans need jobs. Despite that reality, President Obama is aiming to pursue comprehensive immigration reform, even though it is utterly anathema to the interests of American job-seekers.

“A report issued last summer by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) reveals that American job-seekers would get hit with a double whammy of lower wages and higher unemployment levels. “Taking into account all of those flows of new immigrants, CBO and JCT expect that a greater number of immigrants with lower skills than with higher skills would be added to the workforce, slightly pushing down the average wage for the labor force as a whole, other things being equal,” the report states. “Although the average wage would be lower than under current law over the first dozen years, the minimum wage would keep the wages of some less skilled workers from falling, dampening businesses’ demand for those workers,” the analysis added.

“Comprehensive immigration reform supporters cling to the one nugget of good news in the report, noting that the CBO estimates a reduction in the federal budget deficit of $175 billion over the first ten years following reform, along with a decrease in the federal deficit by another $700 billion the decade after that. In other words, the federal deficit would be reduced by an average of $43.75 billion per year over 20 years. In March, the Senate adopted its first formal budget in four years. They want to spend $3.7 trillion for 2014. Thus, assuming the CBO numbers are accurate, America would be shaving a grand total of just under 1.2 percent off 2014’s budget total. Since the federal budget has nearly doubled since 2000, the ongoing savings over the course of two decades would amount to little more than a rounding error.

“Furthermore, assuming the CBO’s calculations are accurate is a big “if.” According to a devastating report by the Heritage Foundation, comprehensive immigration would cost taxpayers $6.3 trillion in new spending on entitlements and social programs over a 50 year period. Heritage contends that $9.4 trillion in government benefits included in the Gang of Eight bill, namely Social Security, Medicare, social programs like Medicaid and food stamps, and coverage under Obamacare, would be offset by only $3.1 trillion in taxes paid by those who receive de facto amnesty.

“The business community isn’t buying Heritage’s contentions. As a result, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, along with the nation’s leading trade associations, will be backing Republicans who favor immigration reform when they run against Republican candidates who don’t in upcoming primaries. In Michigan, Reps. Justin Amash and Kerry Bentivolio will be targeted. In Alabama, business groups hope to undermine the candidacy of Dean Young, whose grassroots campaign propelled him into a Republican Party runoff with former state Senator Bradley Byrne. Business groups may also support Republican incumbent Rep. Mike Simpson, who faces a tea party challenger who pushed Simpson to embrace defunding ObamaCare.” Read MORE

Meanwhile, back on the ranch … or at the local McDonalds, min wage earners, prodded by Unions, STRIKE for $15/hr wages, so they can buy shoes for their children. Strangely, across the nation, the theme of shoes for kids was part of the “random response” from striking workers. Not one mention of greater educational opportunities, or trade school options, or maybe just looking for another job for increased wages. Strange, huh?

What do you suppose it all means?

First, Obamacare is thrust upon us. The White House’s attempt to impose federal healthcare on 300 million adults, plus unknown numbers of illegals, will fundamentally change the relationship between government and people to sovereign and subject! In addition, it will flood the healthcare system with needless tests and procedures for routine “hemorrhoids and hangnails.” (Just spend an hour or two in any ER and see who comes in and why!) Add in the flood of healthcare professionals leaving the field, and you have hospitals, doctors, and clinics overrun and overwhelmed and therefore unable to properly tend to the needed healthcare concerns to those truly in need of care.

A government run website costing $635 million launched 1 Oct is still not working properly on 23 Oct. Worse yet, almost any IT tech worth his salt could probably build a WORKING site for about $100k. And worst of all, NO SECURITY!!! We’re asked, if we manage to get through, to input all kinds of personal information with no safegaurds in place. No background checks are done on those working with our personal information. It’s a security nightmare!

Second, the White House and Congress conspire to grant “AMNESTY” to the hundreds of thousands of illegals already in our nation enjoying FREE food stamps, FREE housing, FREE college tuition (or reduced), FREE “obama-phones” … all funded graciously by you and me, citizen tax-payers!

Do you suppose it’s FAIR that these illegals be allowed to stay at the expense of those who waited LAWFULLY for their turn?

Do you suppose it’s FAIR that these illegals reap benefits they never paid into, again, at the expense of those legitimately in need?

If this White House is all about FAIRNESS, when will he be FAIR to the working men and women of America? When will the White House and Congress strip away the crippling regulations and restrictions and allow AMERICANS to do what we do best … CREATE WEALTH???

NEXT STEP, AMERICA … ?

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2013, celebrations, Chanukah, Christmas, family, Looking ahead, Muslim Brotherhood, patriots, unemployment, US Constitution

It’s Christmastime, and life is busy. I find myself unwilling to even think about the sad … disgusting direction our nation has chosen. Our President is on record professing his desire to “improve” the US Constitution that has stood for 236 years. He speaks pleasant sounding words of “fair distribution” and “equality,” but his ideas are far from fair and just as far from equal. Especially in this spiritual season, how empty and pathetic it is to eliminate GOD from every facet of public life and call it … the Constitutional separation of Church and State! HOGWASH!

If only Americans understood the Constitution. If only the TRUTH was taught instead of the radical progressive doctrine of the left or even alongside the left’s interpretation. If only we refused to permit the “sterilization” of American culture and tradition in light of the deterioration of “quality of life” in our culture. Incidents of increased violence, increased drug & alcohol use and abuse, increased promiscuity and unwanted pregnancy fill our tabloids and newspapers, and still GOD is pushed further and further out of the picture.

It is really hard for me to embrace the “new” ideas of this administration when I consider the results:

• Unemployment continues to grow as thousands are laid off because of the staggering costs of “The Affordable Care Act,” – Obamacare; and because of continued Union demands that price American-made goods out of the market with unreasonable benefit packages and pensions subsidized with PUBLIC funds.
• Look at the storm raging in the Middle East, supported and financially subsidized by American funds. The media would have us believe that “Democracy” is the goal of those rioting to overthrow the brutal governments. DEMOCRACY is nothing more than majority rule, and not necessarily an improvement, and certainly not AMERICA. (American government is structured as a Constitutional Republic, NOT a Democracy!) The Muslim Brotherhood is just the political cover arm of al Qaeda/Hamas that has their own agenda – global jihad to impose Islam, via Shariah law, on an unsuspecting, naive West. Look at London!  Look at Dearborn, Michigan, and Detroit, for pete’s sake!

The bottom line, my friends, is that the Obama administration and the liberal leftist agenda offers no hope – NO HOPE – to those MILLIONS of Americans out of work and struggling to make it. No hope of recovery! No hope to help them stand again in the dignity of satisfying work. President Obama only offers more of the same, so it is up to us- neighbors & friends – to reach beyond our own needs & issues to those in need.

Oh fellow Patriots, enjoy your Christmas (or Chanukah,) your family, and faithful friends by helping others as you are able! I encourage you to celebrate the reality of Christ as fully and as thoroughly as you wish. Who knows if by next year, Christmas may be illegal.

Afterwards, as 2013 begins, may we unite in humility &  repentance as we muster to develop a plan to bring about the ReBirth of a stronger, moral AMERICA.

NO HOPE … without men and women of FAITH giving of their faith.
Not religion, but FAITH!
Not tradition or dogma, but HOPE!
Not rules and regulations, but genuine no-strings compassion!
LIVE IT!

No Favoritism, No “Profiling” for Political Gain

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unemployment

This is a harder issue for some of us … Accepted: everything Obama says and does these days is geared solely toward his reelection effort. As part of the tax packages put before Congress in the last month or so, there has been a bill to provide rewards to employers who hire Veterans.

Any of you who read this blog with any regularity, know I am a Vet and the mom of an Active Duty soldier. I am not rich, by any stretch of the imagination, nor have I EVER had an income of more than 5 digits. As much as I want these returning Vets to have the best of everything, we cannot begin to give ANY segment of our society special preference. This is my objection to gay marriage. This is my objection to abortion. Either we are ALL created equal or we’re not. Either we EACH have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness or we don’t. Each man, women, & child is created with inalienable rights, endowed by our Creator. There can be no favoritism, no “profiling” for political gain. With unemployment at 9.0 – or whatever it is this week, there are plenty of people struggling and out of work. To offer a bonus or tax break to employers who hire Vets, though it sounds good, cannot … must not be started. We simply need a new administration. PERIOD!

Make sense?

So now we know the True Meaning of The Obama Hope & Change Agenda (via Voting American)

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barack-obama, barackobama, Big Government, Capitalism, conservative-blog-network, constitution, democratic, democrats, economy, fdr, Impeachment, john-boehner, Left-wing politics, Liberals, Marxism, medicare, middle-class, New York, obama-administration-2, politics, president-roosevelt, presidents-jobs-speech, Progressives, Republican, Republicans, Socialism, socialists, speaker-politics, stock-market, tax-policy-center, Tea Party Movement, unemployment, unions, United States, united-state, warren-buffett, White House

Yes! We can hope and while we hoping, talk to everyone we know and even those we don’t know … spread the word that there is a better way …

S O C I A L I S M We have had enough of President Obama’s blatant lies and misrepresentations of the facts. It is time for our Elected Officials and Media to call this President out on the carpet and expose his true Agenda for what it really is, Socialism! The American People are not stupid Mr. President and we proved that on November 2nd 2010.  Do you really think we are going to allow this to continue unchecked? Your brand of Liberalism and Soc … Read More

via Voting American

Wikileaks? Yes we have no Obama! (via Boudica BPI Weblog)

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2012-elections, America, barack-obama, change, community-organizer, Democrat, failure, fraud, government, government-corruption, government-deception, government-dependency, government-failure, government-regulation, government-spending, job-killing, obama, obama-administration, obamacare, obamunism, President Obama, uncategorized, unemployment, USA, wikileaks

Read Obama – Wikileaks Via The Mad Jewess BARACK OBAMA – THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING PRESIDENT … Read More

via Boudica BPI Weblog

A Stranger’s “Thank You”

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"life lessons", Afghanistan, America, character training, Ft Jackson SC, Ft Stewart GA, grateful nation, Iraq, Kuwait, Military appreciation, sacrifice, service, spiritual, unemployment, US Air Force, US Army, US Coast Guards, US Marines, US Navy, Warriors Walk

Warrior's Walk, Ft Stewart, GA

On September 12, 2007, my youngest daughter enlisted in the U.S. Army. I allowed her to quit an unsuccessful high school career, obtain her GED, and ship out to her destiny at age 17.

She left the house amidst extreme emotion, but I knew I had to let her go and she knew she was ‘called.’ Staying would have killed her spirit. She completed her basic training at Ft Jackson, SC – same place I did mine in 1976! Ft Stewart became her home for 9 months. Her orders changed frequently, but she eventually deployed to Kuwait in March of ’08. Many of her friends went on to Iraq or Afghanistan, but she was assigned to the base camp in Kuwait. She was gone for a year. I heard from her about once a week, either by email or occasionally by phone. It was a VERY long year for all of us!

She returned after a year in the desert, and her brother and I went down to welcome her HOME, to the USA. The two of us, along with a good friend, drove from Charleston, SC to Ft Stewart, GA and awaited the bus returning from the Atlanta airport. It took an eternity, but finally the warriors rolled down the main street in the bus, to a cheering, yelling, crying crowd of family and friends. It was a wonderful day for our family.

The following day, we visited the Warriors’ Walk, a memorial garden for those who paid the highest price in Iraq or Afghanistan – the latest conflicts. As I started out, I decided to read aloud each and every remembrance plaque which contained the soldier’s name, rank, hometown, unit and theater in which they served. On most of these memorials, however, there were also handwritten notes from friends or family, mementos that held some special meaning, a flag, a snapshot, a can of beer, or a helmet. It didn’t take long before my heart was broken for the families and friends of these brave heroes. I was so deeply grateful that my daughter was not among them, yet I grieved for their loss, for the nation’s loss.

VISIT the WARRIORS WALK, FT STEWART, GA

A stranger to each of these honored lost soldiers, my daughter and I expressed our profound gratitude in silent tears. A stranger’s “Thank You” in behalf of … a grateful nation? … In behalf of my family.

A Stranger's Thank You - We are Grateful!

INSPIRATION MONDAY XIX – THANKS, BEKINDREWRITE

~ B