One might well ask how the Idaho Falls newspaper can keep printing the rantings of Tom Walsh, vitriolic, poison-penned liberal par excellence.

He outdoes himself in today’s edition, inferring that conservatives neither read, nor have the ability to use the internet, but instead get their marching orders from ultra-conservative talk radio, neither questioning nor reasoning on their own.
He suggests Idaho, Wyoming and Utah are still in some prehistoric condition, so backwards that they have no part in the America of 2007. And anyone who lives here is certainly oblivious to reality in the 21st century.

And conservatives are somehow ignorant of the virtues of “America’s Smartest Woman”, Hillary Clinton, but only because they are so misogynistic that they believe no woman is capable of leadership.

Tom Walsh is self-styled as a “free-lance writer” and ski instructor from Driggs. Judging by his performance in the local paper, I’m going to guess he makes more money on the ski slopes.

A longtime, faithful friend has brought a very revealing article to my attention.  Found at WorldNetDaily.com, it is authored by David Kupelian, and though lengthy, it is well worth the read.

Even battle worn warriors in the battle against abortion sometimes forget how we got where we are today.  Kupelian reviews the deception that was used to foist Roe v. Wade on the American people.  OK – they were out-and-out lies.  For instance, Bernard Nathanson, one of the founders of the brutal NARAL, revealed that the much-touted figure of 60% approval of legal abortion in the 1960’s was a complete fabrication.

Take a minute to read this great piece, which condenses 35 years of abortion lies and politics to a manageable serving.  You’ll be glad you did.

It should come as a surprise to no one that Celia Gould has been named by Governor Butch Otter to head the Idaho Department of Agriculture.

A little history is necessary to explain it, however.

While Lieutenant Governor Jim Risch was still planning his 2006 run for governor, Butch Otter quietly recruited almost every influential (but not necessarily conservative) Republican in the state and announced his candidacy much earlier than anyone expected.

Otter’s tactics were so effective that Risch decided only to run for reelection as lieutenant governor. Risch did, however, serve as governor for 7 months after Dirk Kempthorne was promoted to Secretary of the Interior. And Risch did seem intent on leaving a “legacy” in spite of the brevity of his term. But that’s a topic for another post.

Among the influential Republicans recruited by Butch were outgoing Speaker of the House Bruce Newcomb and wife former Representative Celia Gould. (You remember Bruce Newcomb – the county Democrat chairman who couldn’t get elected with a “D” behind his name, so he switched parties.)

Oh, and there was the little issue of the Newcomb-Gould power couple claiming home owner’s exemptions on 2 (TWO) residences, one in his legislative district in Burley, and one in hers in Buhl. (Documentation available upon request.) How annoyed they were when this was pointed out by Trish and Halli in a statehouse press conference. Publicly, they were so “grateful” for having their confusion cleared up. All this in spite of the fact that at the time Celia was chairman of the House Judiciary and Rules Committee and should have known better.

Celia’s leadership goals were thwarted in 2002 when she left the legislature to run in the Republican primary for lieutenant governor, but lost to Risch. That left Celia twiddling her thumbs while husband Bruce served in the legislature.

It appears Butch arrived on the scene with an “offer they couldn’t refuse”. When Butch began his transition into office, then-Director Pat Takasugi was out, and Celia Gould was in.

Is political payback anything new? Absolutely not. Is Celia Gould qualified to head the Idaho Department of Agriculture? Well, she has degree in Political Science from BS University, and has farmed and ranched. You be the judge. Perhaps the degree in political science will be the more valuable of her qualifications.

Most folks seem to have missed this, but President Bush is proposing a tax increase on approximately 20% of Americans. His proposal would view employer-provided health insurance coverage above $15,000 per year as taxable income. Reasonable Americans will ask what good can possibly come from this.

Will it encourage more Americans to buy health insurance? I think not.

Will it lower the cost of health insurance or health care? I think not.

Will it encourage more employers to provide health insurance? Probably not.

Will conservatives rejoice that “their” president raised their taxes in his final 2 years in office? Not likely.
Cliff Kincaid, of Accuracy in Media, has an excellent review of the proposed tax increase. Take a minute to educate yourself on this new attack on the middle class.

From Idaho Chooses Life

As Americans on both sides of the abortion issue marked the 34th year of legalized baby killing this week, leaders of the Abortion Lobby admitted that they were facing a more difficult political and cultural environment. This, despite the elevation of two abortion champions to national office: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

The Washington Post quotes Nancy Keenan, President of NARAL, as advocating a new tone and strategy: “You’re going to see a change in the tone of the debate, and a move toward more solutions, rather than the divisiveness.”

Rather than forcing a straightforward decision on abortion rights – a debate they are losing – Abortion Lobby leaders are going to focus on issues like “reproductive freedom”, as defined by guaranteed access to birth control and emergency contraception.

This redefinition of the debate makes sense on both political and economic grounds.
Planned Parenthood has a sweetheart contract with the manufacturer of the “Plan B” drug – which allows them to undersell almost any retailer. And, as is their want – they will be selling these drugs as a “public right”, for which American taxpayers should pay.

We hear rumors that this national strategy will be pursued here in Idaho. Planned Parenthood of Idaho is apparently preparing for a major legislative push to guarantee access for all women and girls to the sometimes-abortifacient, Plan B.

Not only are there economic advantages to the contraception debate for Planned Parenthood, there are political advantages as well. They are not winning the hearts and minds of Americans by defending abortion-on-demand, practices like Partial Birth Abortion. But they do have an advantage when it comes to emergency contraceptives. Many people do not understand they cause abortions. And most folks have a hard time connecting the dots between easy sex, free contraceptives and higher abortion rates.

And as long as Planned Parenthood & Co. can keep the money rolling in, they will be in a stronger position to buy abortion rights in the dark hallways of Congress and our judicial system.

Today the AP tells us that after two weeks in session, the Idaho Legislature has generated only 388 bills, down 22% from the same time last year. Should we conclude that our legislators are sleeping on the job?

Well, they might be napping, especially while enduring the agency rules reviews, but how can a good conservative or libertarian complain about fewer new laws? The result will be fewer new encroachments on personal freedoms, fewer new taxes, less government growth.

It is illogical to believe that legislators are doing their job only when they are writing new laws. Sometimes inaction or even obstruction is their best option, and serves their constituents’ interests.

You wouldn’t want firemen to be fighting fires every minute of every shift – they would have to be actually setting fires and causing more destruction to keep that up! The public is best served when firemen are ready to work only when there is a need. The same can be said of lawmakers.

OK, some of the more thoughtful legislators would like to see at least one more new law – one that requires an existing law be eliminated before a new one can be enacted.

This year, thank a legislator for doing less. Ultimately, we all benefit.

The future of Sandy Downs is being planned as I write. And the good city of Idaho Falls would like your input. I highly suggest participating in at least one venue for giving input, as there are several to choose from.

You can attend a live meeting Wednesday, January 24th, from 6:30-8:00pm at the Idaho Falls Activity Center (the old armory) at 1575 Skyline Drive. Or you can attend a meeting Thursday, January 25th from 6:30-8:00pm at the Taylor View Junior High cafeteria. The final meeting will be held Friday, January 26th from 1:00-3:00pm at the Idaho Falls Public Library.

If you prefer responding in the privacy of your own home, you can fill out an online survey. However, you must attach the completed survey to an email, or print it out and send it back to the rec department.

Personally, I’m hoping for little new development at Sandy Downs. It is currently the only city location where mud volleyball makes sense, where Cub Scouts can roast marshmallows around a campfire, and where kids can slide down sand hills. I see any further development destroying such unique opportunities.

From Anonymous

When one makes a sincere analysis of why the power of liberalism is so successful at destroying freedom in both our nation and our communities, the secret of such successes are intricate interwoven with the subtle influence and accumulating power of public employee unions.

New York City’s transit union paralyzed the City with an illegal strike. What was demonstrated is that these liberal agendas are so powerful that even when their influences are obviously outside the law, no one is accountable.

Likewise, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s plan to revitalize the California economy has been paralyzed, if not derailed by public employee unions. Arnold has now appointed liberals to appease those union bosses who secretly control California’s entire economy. No one in union leadership is afraid of statutory penalties or exorbitant fines. Entire Cities fear the union’s influence and, in particular, politicians fear union disapproval.

Unions were initially established to protect the little guys and give them voice against big industry. These once beneficial entities have led the hearts of the people into supporting and sustaining a false facade of union influence through governmental policy, which is now silently going after the little guys unions once protected. It is currently the destination of public policy to remove all our property rights through taxation and imminent domain.

It is the same modus operandi that is being employed by education unions to remove local control by creating a one-party system which is supported by public employees who think they are voting for people who are sincerely interested in educating our children. The reality is that they are placing the control in the hands and hearts of conspiring men who have a very intense desire to control this entire country’s economy through tyranny.

When you observe the property values in California and the numbers of businesses leaving, Pocatello, Idaho is on the same course. The last election in Pocatello clearly shows how the public employees were deceitfully manipulated by fear into believing that they were going to lose their jobs if they did not support the union mentality. The union already had its grasp on City leadership, which control was greatly threatened by a looming change. Their unchallenged union conduct won them the prize, once again.

The terrible costs of losing our voices and sustaining trust in free elections are now realities. Every Pocatello citizen must look inside their hearts and ask why they did not get involved with the candidates who had the courage to run against this growing evil. We no longer need to wonder where our future resides. All that needs to be done is to see where California and New York have gone.

Every citizen in Pocatello already knows that their freedoms are gone. People in Pocatello know they are afraid to attend City Council meetings, or make contributions to a political candidate because they are afraid of becoming a mark for subversive union influence. What the citizens of Pocatello fail to see is that they have already marked themselves as cowards because those who have usurped governmental policy and control already know that the people are more willing to submit than fight for diminishing freedoms.

Is it possible Larry Ghan and Roger Bray have plans to expand union influence into the County and the remaining city employees? Some fear their intentions are to remove Jim Guthrie because he is now the only opposition.

What’s happening to Pocatello is more about who we are religiously than we would care to think. We cannot support our soldiers in Iraq who are fighting for freedoms that we are not even willing to stand up for in our own community. How can anyone in Pocatello place their hand over their heart in a pledge of allegiance to our flag, when they have willingly done nothing to sustain the spirit of our freedom?

World renowned chef Dolores Casella provided this great recipe.

2 c salt
3-5 T onion powder
2 T paprika
½ t freshly grated nutmeg

1 ½ t each:
garlic powder
curry powder
chili powder
dry mustard
black pepper

1 t each:
dried basil
oregano
red pepper
thyme
rosemary

Combine all in a food processor or blender for several seconds. Store in covered container.

By Tom Loertscher

I was visiting with the director of Public TV (aka government television) the other day and he was extolling all of the great things they were doing, i.e. high definition signal, programming and he finally got to one that really caught my attention. In the chambers of the House and Senate they have installed new cameras and the quality of the streaming over the internet has been much improved. They have the ability to now send pictures of all of the floor debate and now you at home will be able to follow the session in greater detail.

For some that may not be a big deal and who has the time to watch this all day long anyway? In case you are interested and you know when a bill of interest to you comes along, you will be able to hear the debate and witness the vote in living color. One of the clerks in the house told me that it was inspiring her to look her best knowing that she was going to be on live internet coverage every day. I am sure that members of the House will be making new efforts to stay awake during some of the dry and prolonged debates. No one wants to be caught napping on camera.

Legislation is now beginning to make its way through the House, even some significant things. One thing that will be debated soon is an increase in the maximum amount that can be held in the Budget Stabilization. As with most measures it has its good and bad sides. The good part is that you have a contingency in place when there are downturns in the economy, sort of a safety net to get you through a bad time. The down side is that it gives a false sense of security if the legislature’s spending habits are out of control. Anther good thing about the reserve is that it takes money off the table as it were, surplus revenues that otherwise would be devoured and buried in continuing programs. I’ll be supporting the bill, even though I would prefer better fiscal restraint than we seem to have.

I had my first trip to the Governor’s office the other day and what happened there is worth repeating, because I think he gets it. Several of us from Eastern Idaho met with him concerning the substance abuse and mental heath problems that our correctional system has been facing. Representative JoAn Wood has come up with an idea to divert people that would otherwise be going to state prison, to an intense probation and treatment program. We think it will ultimately slow the increase of inmates that are entering the system and would involve a first time ever co-operative effort between Health and Welfare, Corrections, the Judiciary and probation.

Governor Otter was definitely interested and then asked Representative Wood, “How are you going to pay for it.” Her response, “I was hoping to take the money from the surplus.” The Governor was quick to point out that he was not in the mood to start a new program that will turn into another layer on top of current programs that are not working. He will only sign on if we can find the funding for this “pilot project” from existing budgets, and that it should be treated as a replacement and not something new. How refreshing. That is how this should work.

I have decided that it is probably a good thing that cameras are not in the committee rooms, especially during rules review time. Hearing some of the explanations of the agencies and the monotone nature of some of the presentations seems to make some member’s eyelids heavy. In those instances I find it helpful to get up and walk around a bit. At least it has some exercise value.