Northern Nevada Conservative

Whitey is Too Dumb to Know 24 is Not Real

2007-01-19T10:07:00.000-08:00

That seems to be the consensus of the Muslims who spoke to the AP. So now they are concerned about getting beat up on the street over a 24 episode. They are not concerned about getting beat up cause their people fly planes into buildings and blow themselves up in public places, just over 24 episodes.

Feds Crap on the Tenth Amendment, Again

2007-01-18T07:38:00.000-08:00

As you may know, California enacted a medical marijuana law in 1996. According to federal law (mind you, not the constitution) still lists marijuana as being illegal for any use, medical or otherwise. The DEA has consistently raided medical marijuana clinics since their inception. Well, they did it again.

LOS ANGELES - Federal drug agents raided nearly a dozen medical marijuana clinics in California, seizing several thousand pounds of processed marijuana, along with weapons and money, authorities said.

In case you have forgotten, the tenth amendment states:

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Since marijuana is not addressed within the Constitution, it is well within the rights of the people of California to legalize marijuana for whatever use they see fit, medical or otherwise.

Whether you support medical marijuana or not, I hope this causes you some serious outrage. The people voted for it, and the Constitution supports, but the feds don't care. Just because it's not your rights that are being infringed upon today doesn't mean it won't be yours tomorrow.

It Makes Perfect Sense

2007-01-04T16:15:00.000-08:00

To the President at least. First he appoints the ex-CIA chief to be the Secretary of Defense. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure he is an intelligent, capable individual. But I was forced to ask at the time, wouldn't it make more sense to appoint one of the many retired senior military folks?

Now, via Drudge, President Bush is going to appoint a retired admiral to lead the Nation's intelligence organizations. Huh? So let me get this straight. You put the intel guy in charge of the military and the military guy in charge of intel? Okay.

I'm Back

2007-01-02T10:50:00.000-08:00

I recently had a close family member become rather ill. For the last couple weeks, she has been the only thing on my mind. I have not wanted to think about politics or blogging at all. Anyway, she is doing well now, and I should have more frequent postings again.

What President Bush Could Learn From Ahmadinejad

2006-12-20T10:36:00.000-08:00

Propaganda 101. If you haven't heard, President Bush told the world today that we are not winning in Iraq. It won't be long before that gets back to our troops. I can't imagine what would posses the Commander in Chief to make such a ridiculous announcement, but what a bad idea. I can only imagine what it will do for troop moral. I can't express how angry I am over this. I am at a loss for words, and that doesn't happen often.

Gun Totin' Teachers

2006-12-20T08:20:00.000-08:00

First off, I would like to separate myself from a certain group of people. In my research on this issue, I have come across a group of people that would like to do away with CCW permits, and just blanketly allow everyone to carry concealed weapons. I am not of this crowd. CCW permits allow us to sort out those with violent histories and mental instabilities. Neither of those groups of people should be allow to carry a weapon.

Secondly, I am not completely convinced arming teachers is the solution to school violence. I do, however believe there is enough evidence to support testing the effectiveness of such a proposal. Only when such a method is put in to practice on a small scale will we have the data to make an educated decision about such a proposal.

For those of you who don't already know, this debate began over at Reno and it's Discontents. I encourage you to read the whole thing here and here, including all of the comments.

I would like to point out, I did say we had no evidence pro or con for concealed weapons in schools, so we would need to make assumptions based on data of concealed weapons in the public. I was incorrect and I would like to site a couple of cases below. These both com from a World Net Daily article, based on a follow up Mr. Lott did to his first study.

In the Pearl, Miss., shooting, an assistant principal retrieved his gun from his office and used it to physically immobilize the shooter before he caused additional harm.

In Edinboro, Penn., which left one teacher dead, "a shotgun pointed at the offender while he was reloading his gun prevented additional harm. The police did not arrive for another ten minutes" after the assailant was apprehended by
school staff.

These two cases present clear evidence of lives/injuries saved by the presence of a carefully used weapon in schools. I don't intend to base my entire case around these two incidents, but for now, I have to go. I will continue this in a later post.

Annual Awards

2006-12-18T13:09:00.000-08:00

Seems to me that every blog has some type of a year end awards, so I figured, what the heck. I'm jumping on the bandwagon. I may have more than this, but here are a few to get us started.

Best blog of the year:
Dullard Mush. The Anon Guy has done something in the infancy of his blog that I can't compliment enough. Keep up the good work!

Worst blog of the year:
Inside Nevada Politics. Who? Exactly. Six months ago it would have been in the running for the previous award. That was the last time we got a post with any substance.

Best looney lib blog of the year:
NV Upnorth. That guy is wrong on nearly every issue, but his points are well thought out and most times I respect them.

Fake conservative of the year:
Dean Heller. I'm still not sure how he was able to convince so many people he was a conservative.

Runner Up for the fake conservative of the year:
Jill Derby. I wonder if she used Pelosi's San Fransisco money to shoot her commercials for her values "right off the ranch". She probably deserved to win this award, but since Heller won the election, he obviously fooled more people.

Biggest Cajones:
Bob Beers. Giving guns to teachers? Don't get me wrong, I like it, but no politician in their right mind would touch that with a ten foot pole. Kudos to Bob for being fearless in his pursuit of his beliefs.

Runner Up for Biggest Cajones:
Richard Disney. During his campaign, there was not political double speak coming from Richard. Love him or hate him, he always said what was on his mind.

Hypocrite of the Year:
Al Gore. Come on Al. Do you really expect us to believe you burned enough jet fuel for me to drive my gas guzzling SUV around the world a couple dozen times because you truly care about the environment? We're not as dumb as you look. By the way, you may want to fuel up the ole' jet again and get to preaching about going veg, since cows are worse polluters than cars. I hear a new movie in the works. An inconvenient toot.

Big Hat No Cattle Award:
Jim Gibbons. Besides his name, what exactly did Gibbons campaign on? Yes I held my nose and voted for him, because he was better than Titus, but man what a raw deal for Nevadans. Watching him debate was something else. Most times, his answer had nothing to do with the question, and everything to do with whatever talking points on his cue card he hadn't hit yet. Gibbons proved you can win an election by tossing out random buzz words at appropriate times.

Election Surprise of the Year:
Joe Enge. I'm still not sure how a conservative managed to penetrate the liberal fortress of the school board, but good job Joe!

If I feel the need, there may be more to come.

1st Hurdle Cleared for Legends

2006-12-12T07:33:00.000-08:00

Last night, the Nevada Commission on Tourism approved the Legends development in Sparks. It still awaits approval by the Govenour and the Sparks City Council. The project will be subsidized by STAR bonds. I do expect to see more resistance as this moves forward. You will always have the "anti-progress" crowd who perpetually longs for "the way things used to be" and the "screw big business" crowd who will complain about the usage of STAR bonds.

As an unabashed capitalist, I am all for this development. And it's not just cause I live near there (but I am already counting the dollar signs in real estate appreciation), but this could really launch Sparks as a tourist town. That will only mean more tax dollars for the city of Sparks. And that only mean more improvements to the great city of Sparks. But of course, we will lose a huge patch of dead weeds and unused space, which I'm sure will anger some.

Remember Pearl Harbor

2006-12-07T13:37:00.000-08:00

I have felt uninspired to write much lately, but I felt this is very important. Take a minute to remember those who gave their lives on December 7, 1941. May the lives lost at Pearl Harbor forever serve as a reminder of the evil that exists in our world.

My Response to Michael Moore

2006-11-16T10:16:00.000-08:00

I saw this on Michelle Malkin. I suggest you read it. I have posted my conservative manifesto below in rebuttal.

Dear Looney Leftist,

The following is my promise to you in our time in the minority.

1. We will always respect you for your liberal beliefs. We will never, ever, call you "unpatriotic" simply because you disagree with us. We will, however, call you unpatriotic when you insist upon appeasing terrorists and putting our lives and children's lives at risk.

2. We will let you marry whomever you want, even when some of us consider your behavior to be "different" or "immoral." We will, however, promise to fight your socialist agenda of moral equivalence on all fronts, including marriage.

3. We will not spend your grandchildren's money on our personal whims or to enrich our friends. That means even from the minority, I will fight your socialized medicine tooth and nail. Not to mention your instance that the government pay for your kind to kill their children. The good news for us is, at the rate you kill your kids, you can't hold the majority for long.

4.When you soon bring our sons and daughters home from Iraq, please leave ours there. Though I will never understand your belief that freedom is not worth fighting for, I respect your right to that belief. We will continue to volunteer ourselves and our children to fight and die for your right to be a noodle spined appeaser.

5.When you make America the last Western democracy to have socialized medicine, and all Americans are able to get help from underpaid, disgruntled doctors, after having to wait months to get poor medical attention. We promise that you, too, will be able to see a doctor, regardless of your ability to pay. And regardless of how much money you have, you will be forced to deal with second rate medical care. And from the minority, I will fight to save the lives of your unborn children you seek to murder in the name of a form of stem cell research that has produced no medical advances to date.

6.Even though we have opposed environmental regulation, we hope when you clean up our air and water, you, the Democratic majority, will let us, too, park our private jets right next the ones you and Al Gore travel around in preaching environmental regulation.

7.Should a mass murderer ever kill 3,000 people on our soil, we will devote every single resource to tracking him down and bringing him to justice; immediately following your liberal friends writing a stern letter to solve the problem, as you have tended to do in the past. We will also promise not to bomb and aspirin factory to cover up our own adultery.

Great Timing Rumy.

2006-11-08T10:05:00.000-08:00

Immediately after finishing my last post, I see on msnbc that Rumsfeld is stepping down. It was listed in their breaking news banner with no article yet, so I don't have a better link. I kinda knew it was gonna happen, since all the talking heads were saying it last night. If this move had been made two weeks ago, this would have been a different election. Again, I don't have a crystal ball to know if the Republicans would have held the house if Rumsfeld made this move a couple weeks ago, but it would have been a different election. Thanks Rumy.

Now That It's Over, the Gloves are Off

2006-11-08T09:34:00.000-08:00

I have refrained from expressing much of my dissapointment with the GOP until now because I help hope that they may pull it out. Many people seem to think the solution for my frustration with the GOP was to vote for democrats. The problem I have with that, is I dislike many Republicans because half the time (or more) they act like liberals. So putting a democrat in office would not solve my problem.

Looking for someone to blame for the national failure of the GOP yesterday? Start with Rumsfeld. Those who are close to me have been hearing me say for some time now that Rumsfeld needs to go. Next person to blame? The President. It really has nothing to do with whether or not Rumsfeld is doing a good job. In politics, perception is reality. Americans want change in Iraq and we have known that for some time now. There really does not seem to be a major change we can make in Iraq to turn things around. The GOP should have turned to perception, and they didn't. In politics, especially at a high level, you must understand going in that you may be asked to fall on the sword. Enter Donald Rumsfeld.

Rumsfeld should have recognized his opportunity to fall on the sword and he should have stepped down. It would have given the American people the perception of taking a new direction in Iraq. If he stepped down two weeks ago, this is a much different election. I don't have my crystal ball to say the GOP would have held congress, but it would have been much different.

If Rumsfeld was unwilling to step down, the President shoud have offered some encouragement.

This situation has nothing to do with right or wrong and it has everything to do with the good of the party and the American people.

Why I am Voting Yes on Question 7

2006-11-03T07:32:00.000-08:00

I previously offered an interview with Neal Levine from CRCM (and he's not a stoner, as many have indicated they suspect). I want to offer my thoughts and reasons for supporting Question 7.

One theory that I have recently heard is that it is the first step to legalizing all drugs. The theory happens to come from someone who's opinion I value greatly and consider on many issues. While there is no doubt a portion of the yes on 7 folks who have that type of an agenda, I do not; and it is my opinion that the "legalize all drugs" crowd represents a very small portion of those of us who support question 7.

So why weed and not coke, meth, or heroin? My reason is simple. Our government is here to protect us from our enemies, not ourselves. The only people being hurt by marijuana are the uses themselves. In my opinion, it is your God given right to destroy your body and brain in any way you so choose. The problem with the other drugs I have listed is the effect they have on people. People do not think or act right when they are under the control of those substances. Meth steals your soul, and I have seen it first hand. People whom I used to call friends turned from honest, generous people to shady, unethical theives in a matter of months. The side effects of drugs like meth cause people to steal and become violent in search of more.

The effects of marijuana include laziness and mental slowness. I have met plenty of people who have never touched weed that are slow and lazy. No one tries to lock them up. As long as you take care of yourself and your family so I don't have to, I really don't care how slow or lazy you are.

I find most of the arguments agianst Question 7 especially baffling living in Nevada. We have 24/7 gambling, alcohol, and prostitution. You can light up a cigarette anywhere you please, but pot is evil? And don't forget, fast food on every corner. Every single one of those things I just listed is more damaging to society than pot. If you visit drugwarfacts.org, they have the proof. Their statistics are a little old, but still valid.

We'll start at the top, with cigarettes. They kill 435,000 Americans every year. So if you are hell bent on a mission to save people from themselves, that would be a good place to start. Not to mention second hand smoke. Funny thing is, most of the people who have told me that they don't want 7 to pass, are voting against both 4 and 5. I really don't understand what the logic there is. You don't want a people to be able to smoke weed at home, but you are all in favor of sucking down a lucky strike at the slot machine at Albertsons, around our kids? If you are one of those people and you are reading this, please comment on why you feel that way. I would really like to discuss it with you.

Next on the list is poor diet and exersise. 365,000 Americans each year die due to poor diet and exersise. I know for a fact many of the same people that are against question 7 hit the drive through for lunch almost daily. Maybe next election cycle we need an initiative to outlaw fast food. It is much more dangerous than marijuana.

Third on the list? Alcohol. 85,000 people each year due to alcohol consumption. And eleventh on the list is sexual behaviors, of which I would include prostatution. 20,000 people each year die from their sexual behaviors.

All of the things I have just discussed are available 24 hours per day, seven days per week here in Nevada. So what is the number of deaths due to marijuana consumption each year? Well, in 2000, that number was zero. Nada, zip, zilch, nothing, not one. Not a single person died due to marijuana consumption. So by leaving marijuana illegal, you are still not even saving anyone from themselves.

But what kind of a message does it send to our kids? I hear that one a lot. Well, all of the things we just talked about are legal and in our kids faces every day. We choose to educate our kids about the dangers of alcohol, tobacco, and sex, why not add marijuana to the list? Education is the key to keeping your kids away from all the bad habbits you don't want them to have. I am perplexed by the fact that most of the people that use the "what about the kids argument" are against sex ed in school. You don't trust the government to teach your kids about sex, but you rely on them to teach your kids about drugs? That dog don't hunt. Again, if this is you, please comment, because I really don't understand.

So we have established that marijuana is not nearly as dangerous as the government would have you believe. So when is marijuana dangerous? Marijuana is dangerous when it is being sold. Drug dealers carry guns and take part in violent activities. If a pot head could get is pot at the local head shop, he would have no reason to go visit a scary drug dealer in a bad neighborhood. You could effectively wipe out a huge portion of drug dealers in Nevada with one piece of legislation. Put them all out of business.

A survey taken at my high school while I was there (it's been about ten years now) showed that 71% of the seniors at my high school had tried pot, regardless of the illegal status. For those of you who's biggest fear is the message to the kids, I hope that's a message to you. If you have more than one child, statistically you will have a kid that at least tries smoking weed once. When they do, would you rather have them go to get it from a drug dealer in a bad neighborhood with a gun, or a local store?

In wrapping up my tyraid, I moved to Nevada 3 years ago from the socialist state of California. One of the major reasons was the tax structure here in Nevada. Thanks to casinos and gambling, we pay very little in taxes compared to other states. If the weed is gonna be sold anyway, why not get our share? Those new cops we are crying for, could be financed by weed. Not to mention the man hours that would be freed up if our law enforcement wasn't wasting their time putting a kid in jail over night for a joint.

Oh yeah, and that court battle that is coming if Question 7 passes, bring it on. We are long overdue for a states rights battle, I would love to see it happen right here in Nevada.

Vote yes on Question 7.

After Reading This, I Won't Be Able to Sleep

2006-11-01T15:22:00.000-08:00

I have taken this entire post from Peakah's Provocations. Please go there to read the rest. It is my sincere hope that some pro-baby murderers, I mean pro-choicers, stop by and read this.

Stories like this make me sick to my stomach but what's worse, these stories are happening as you read this... SOMETHING MUST BE DONE!! THIS IS INFANTACIDE!!

Throw-Away BabiesBy Sharon Hughes
What do some hospitals do with babies that are aborted but still alive? Throw them in the ‘dirty room’. What happens if a nurse reports such treatment? They’re fired. What happens when hospitals violate the Born Alive Infants Protection Act and falsify legal documents? My guest, Jill Stanek, a nurse-now journalist, who goes where few women dare to go...bravely exposing the abortion industry's true face, talked with me about this on the show today.

Go Get 'Em Trump!

2006-11-01T14:33:00.000-08:00

Donald Trump was already one of my heros, but this article on cnn.com moved him up quite a few coolness points in my book. Apparently the city of Palm Beach thinks his flag is too tall and they want it taken down. Trump has this to say:

"anyone who objects should not, in my opinion, hold a public office of any kind -- at least not in this country."

Well said Mr. Trump.

Interview with Neal Levine, Campaign Manager for Yes on Question 7

2006-10-30T09:04:00.000-08:00

I have plenty of my own thoughts on Question 7, but I wanted to give people an opportunity to get the thoughts of an expert on the matter. The following is my interview with Neal Levine. I would also like to thank Mr. Levine, who took time out of his busy schedule to speak with me. I would also like to thank the Anon Guy for the 10 question interview idea. You can visit the Yes on Question 7 website here.

1. A lot of people think this is about a bunch of pot heads trying
tolegitimize their drug culture. What do you say to that?

I think that's both derogatory and silly. I don't personally use marijuana, I'm happily married to a wonderful woman who happens to be an RN and detests all drug use, and we're both proud parents of an amazing son. Not exactly the poster child for the "drug culture." I just happen to believe that our marijuana policy is awful. It's a tremendous waste of resources, and it puts a lot of people into the criminal justice system that probably don't need to be there. Last year in Nevada, almost 10,000 violent crimes (nearly two-thirds of all violent crimes) went unsolved. Meanwhile, Nevada spent $42 million on marijuana prohibition and arrested nearly 5,000 people for the simple possession of marijuana. Meanwhile, marijuana use continues unabated, and all of the money goes to violent gangs and drug dealer. I think that's outrageous. Question 7 is a sensible, moderate proposal that replaces a very bad policy with a pragmatic one.

2. Todd Raybuck, your biggest opponent and a Las Vegas police officer, says the passing of question 7 will embolden drug dealers. I know you don't agree. Can you tell me why?

I don't agree because I have yet to see one example of where a criminal market is able to successfully compete against a legally regulated one. I don't see people selling beer on street corners.

3. Marijuana is still against federal law. Some people think if question 7 passes, it will just open marijuana smokers up to harrassment from the federal government, like what has happened in California with medical marijuana. Do you anticipate this and do you have a plan in place to counter it?

I can't imagine a scenario where the feds would be harassing individualNevadans. They just don't have the manpower. Ninety-nine percent of allmarijuana arrests happen at the state and local level, which is why medical marijuana laws have been effective in protecting patients fromarrest. You mention California, but Proposition 215 -- that state'smedical marijuana law -- passed a decade ago and there are hundreds ofmedical marijuana dispensaries up and operating there today. The feds have not stomped them out, and they were powerless to stop the law from going into effect.

Regardless, it is fully within our state's right to adopt our own marijuana laws. When Nevada was voting on a medical marijuana law in 1998 and 2000, the federal government threatened to shut down the program if it passed. Almost six years later, Nevada's medical marijuana program is alive and well and serving over 1,500 patients -- and the federal government hasn't interfered yet. Nor has the federal government acted to stop the Nevada Board of Pharmacy's Canadian Drug Program, which clearly violates federal law.

Quite frankly, considering the fact that Washington can only check 5% ofthe containers coming into this country, cannot secure our borders, oreven clean up after a hurricane, I would hope they have better things to do than go after Nevadans abiding by state law.

4. If question 7 passes, Nevada will be the first state to legalize marijuana. Therefore, we don't have much evidence to predict how legalization will truely play out.There are other countries which have legalized marijuana. Do you have some statistics or evidence from othercountries showing changes in crime rates, total number of users, and suchafter legalization?

We're not talking about free-for-all marijuana availability -- the free-for-all is what's happening right now in the criminal market in Nevada. Question 7 proposes a system of strict regulation, control, and taxation, to take marijuana out of the hands of violent gangs and drugdealers and focus our law enforcement resources on violent crimes instead.

Contrary to the opposition's claims, this is not a radical concept: Twelve states, including Nevada, have passed laws to reduce criminal penalties onthe use of marijuana. Nevada and ten other states have also passed laws to make marijuana medically available to seriously ill people who have the approval of their doctors.

As for statistics, let's talk about Nevada: under the current system of marijuana prohibition, the White House Office of National Drug ControlPolicy states that nearly half of Nevada's high school seniors admit tohaving tried marijuana, while one in five admit to using it habitually. In contrast, in The Netherlands -- a nation that has reformed its marijuana laws -- only 28% of teens have tried it, according to the Center for DrugResearch. In 2004, the United Kingdom dramatically eased penalties on marijuana use, and this year the nation recorded its lowest percentage of marijuana use in a decade -- including among 16- to 24-year-olds.

5. Many people say that marijuana is a gateway drug and question 7 will open the flood gates of new drug users. Do you agree? Why or why not?

The "gateway theory" is just a myth made up by prohibitionists to attempt to justify why something that is safer than alcohol is illegal. Let's lookat the numbers: The 2004 National Survey on Drug Use and Health estimatesthat the number of Americans who have used marijuana is between 95 and 100 million. If the "gateway theory" were true, we would have tens of millions of cocaine and heroin users in our country. However, according tothe U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 5.3 million people haveused cocaine and 2.78 million have used heroin. An Institute of Medicine report from 1999 -- funded by the federal government --found, "There is no evidence that marijuana serves as a stepping stone on the basis of its particular physiological effect ... It does not appear to be a gateway drug to the extent that it is the cause or even that it is the most significant predictor of serious drug abuse." And according to a recentstudy commissioned by the British Parliament, "the gateway theory haslittle evidence to support it despite copious research."

To put it another way, if you tell me a heroin or meth addict has used marijuana, that's not surprising. But the vast majority of people who use marijuana simply do not move on to harder drugs. That's a cold, hard fact.That's another reason why I say that "gateway" is a myth. Lots of peoplehave lots of personal experience with a loved one who has fallen into thecycle of addiction, so "gateway" can seem true to them on a person level. But addiction is a very complicated thing, with lots of contributing factors. It is not nearly as black and white as proponents of the "gateway theory" would have us believe.

Regarding Question 7 specifically, 50% of the tax revenue generated by the initiative is dedicated to drug and alcohol education and treatment,Question 7 doubles the penalty to anyone who gives or sells marijuana to aminor and institute a strict "We Card" system, where anyone under the age of 21 is not allowed into any establishment that sells marijuana, muchless buy it. Marijuana sales are also specifically forbidden in any place that sells alcohol or permits gaming, and for good measure, Question 7 specifically bans the sale of marijuana in grocery stores, convenience stores and night clubs. This is far more pragmatic than the current free-for-all, criminal market for marijuana in Nevada.

6. How much tax revenue do you project question 7 will bring to Nevada?

Question 7 requires that adults who use marijuana legally in the
privacy of their homes obtain it from legally regulated businesses,
thereby generating tax revenues for the state instead of profits for drug dealers.

According to a study released by the University of Nevada at Las Vegas in 2002, regulating marijuana in our state would generate at least $28.6 million in annual tax revenues. Question 7 earmarks half of this money for drug and alcohol education and rehabilitation programs, which currently receive only $13.5 million annually from the state's general fund.

7. Will question 7 encourage more kids to try marijuana?

Question 7 does not make it easier for teens to get marijuana, and it does not send the wrong message to children. It’s a fact that our current laws don’t work. Right now, anyone who wants marijuana can get it -- no matter how young they are. Under the current system of prohibition, 86% of high school seniors admit to the federal government that they find marijuana easy to obtain... a figure that has remained nearly constant over the past 30 years. Like I've said, here in Nevada, nearly half of high school seniors admit to having tried marijuana, and one in five admit to using it habitually.

Under Question 7, we'll know who is selling marijuana and whom they’reselling it to. You’d haveto be an adult aged 21 or older with a valid ID to even enter retail establishments that sell marijuana. Also, Question 7 would prohibit any establishment from being within 500 feet of a school --and it doubles the penalty for giving or selling marijuana to a minor. According to former Attorney General Brian Sandoval, the State of Nevadahas undeniably succeeded in reducing teen smoking through the "We Card"program. There is no reason to think that a similar -- and even more restrictive -- program for marijuana would not have similar success. Drug dealers don’t card.

8. If question 7 passes, do you expect a lengthy court battle?

The people of Nevada are wholly within their right to pass this law, and both candidates for state Attorney General -- Don Chairez and Catherine Cortez Masto -- have stated that they'll support and enforce the will ofNevada's voters if that will is ever challenged.

9. There has recently been a shift in support for legalization among conservatives. More and more conservatives are begining to support legalization? To what do you attribute this shift?

We're a non-partisan campaign and we're proud to have support from throughout the political spectrum, but many conservatives are especially angry at the cost of marijuana prohibition and the lack of results in the war on marijuana. A 2005 study endorsed by Milton Friedman, a recognized conservative, and more than 530 other distinguished economists found that our nation spends $7.7 billion annually on marijuana prohibition.

Here in Nevada, we're spending $42 million to arrest nearly 5,000 people for the simple possession of marijuana, while two-thirds of our state's most violent crimes are going unsolved. Yet the U.S. Justice Department's 2006 National Drug Threat Assessment report states that "marijuana availability is high and stable or increasing slightly." Our marijuana laws don't work, and Question 7 is a sensible alternative that people of all walks of life in Nevada are supporting.

10. Is there anything I missed you would like to add?

Thank you for the opportunity to discuss the initiative, and I urge the people of Nevada to fix our state's broken marijuana laws by voting yes on Question 7 on November 7.

Did I Miss the Flying Pig?

2006-10-25T14:21:00.000-07:00

I must have. In this article on msnbc , the New Jersey supreme court ruled not to rule on gay marriage. If you are like me, it is almost difficult to comprehend that a group of judges would actually not impose their morals and values on the public by legistlating from the bench.

It is rare site to see a supreme court decide that an issue is outside of their scope. I want congradulate the NJ supreme court for actually doing the job that they are in the position to do, and nothing more. Gay marriage is a social issue that should be handle at the state legislature and/ or the people of the state.

Jill Derby: The Daughter of D.C. Or is it CA?

2006-10-04T15:52:00.000-07:00

Jill Derby has gone to great lengths in her campaign to make here sound the the Nevadan's Nevadan. Today I came across Derby's latest FEC report and I have a few questions for Jill Derby.

1. If you are so well loved in Nevada, how come more than half of your contributions came for out side of Nevada? I count 63 total contributions and 33 from out of state. Who's interests do you really have in mind Jill?

2. If you have so much dislike for the Washington D.C., how come 22% of your donations have come from D.C.?

3. Typically died in the wool Nevadans (like you claim to be) don't like Californians much. (Being an escaped Californian myself, trust me, I have heard all about it) Why are 16% of your donations coming from California?

Jill Derby is hoping she will be able to sneak her liberal values right past us by parading around as some half conservative, non-politician, D.C. outsider, home grown Nevadan. The truth about Jill Derby is she is as liberal as they come, has been a politician for quite a long time, the big liberals in D.C. are funding her campaign, and her "Nevada values" are for sale.

Breaking News: Augisitne's Husband Arrested

2006-09-29T15:43:00.001-07:00

I don't have any details on this, but I just got a phone call about it. From what I know, he was arrested in Michigan after some type of numbing agent was found in Kathy Augistine's body. I will post more as I know more.

John J. Ryan, You Will Not Be Forgotten

2006-09-07T08:32:00.000-07:00

On September 11, 2001 this great nation came under attack. 2,996 Americans lost their lives that day. John J. Ryan was one of them. Mr. Ryan lost his life in the World Trade Center at the young age of 45. Mr. Ryan was the vice president of Keefe, Bruyette & Woods and resided in West Windsor, N.J. As we approach the five year anniversary of that horrific day, let us not forget John J. Ryan or any of the other 2,996 who's lives were taken by Islamic terrorists.

The Lazy 8 Decision

2006-08-29T08:13:00.000-07:00

As most of you have probably heard, the Sparks City Council denied the Lazy 8 resort permission to place a casino in Spanish Springs. Without taking sides on the placement of the casino, I am surprised by the city council’s decision. I listened to many people speak for and against the casino and one thing really stood out for me. It sounded quite clear that the city council had entered a contractual agreement with the Lazy 8 back in 1994 that the 2006 city council is not willing to honor. I really hope this doesn't end badly for the city of Sparks.

The Sparks Fly in Sparks

2006-08-23T21:31:00.000-07:00

Tonight was a special session of the Sparks City Council to discuss the placement of the Lazy 8 Resort. I must admit, I left before the public hearing was over, but I will give you my take on what I saw. I am just going to give you a quick overview tonight, and I will follow it up tomorrow.

My first impression was quite overwhelming. The streets leading up the city building were lined with people holding signs opposing the casino going in Spanish Springs. The minute I started walking towards the building I could see the crowd. The meeting was very poorly planned. There were far to many people to accommodate in such a small building. Crowds of people were forced to watch the session on TV.

As the meeting opened, Mayor Martini and Councilman Carrigan both disclosed Carlos Vasquez, the representative for the Lazy 8, is managing both of their campaigns. Now the Mayor stated he is just facilitating the session and therefore had no conflict of interest. Good enough for me. Carrigan's answer was not quite as settling.

Carrigan's stance was since he did not stand to benefit financially from the casino he did not have a conflict of interest. There has been an ethics complaint filed against Carrigan over his involvement with Mr. Vasquez. I do believe that Mr. Carrigan with be safe on the grounds that he does not stand to benefit financially.

That being said, Mr. Carrigan should have abstained from the vote. While he may not have been required to abstain, he should have volunteered because it was the right thing to do.

As far as the proceedings went, it looked like a huge case of NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) to me. Most everybody supported the Lazy 8 being built. They just support it being built somewhere else. Look here tomorrow for more information on the proceedings.

Nevada's Poor Grade on Immigration

2006-08-22T14:50:00.000-07:00

Americans for better immigration recently released their congressional report card on immigration. To say the least, it was ugly for Nevadans. The following numbers are based the list of the 535 member career rankings. The best rating on immigration is Jim Gibbons, at 84%. Gibbons is the only one who can even be remotely proud of his record. John Porter and John Ensign both came in at 63% followed by Scary Reid at 58%. Anybody wanna know where Shelley Berkeley came in? 18%. If you average them all out, you get 57%. I don't know about you, but I don't think those numbers reflect the way the majority of Nevadans feel. It's time to start letting our elected officials know how we feel.

The Truth About Charter Schools

2006-08-22T13:22:00.000-07:00

You won't find anywhere in this piece on msnbc. The study compares students at charter schools to students at public schools. They are quick to mention that students at public schools do better in math and reading than those at charter schools. What they fail to mention is that many of the students in charter schools have come from a public school and were switched because of poor behavior, performance, etc. What we learned from our experience with Halima academy is that very often these children improve in a charter school. This study is a complete apples to oranges example. The only fair comparison would be tracking the same student in public school and then in a charter school. Of course, the school board is not in any hurry to do that study.

Dean Heller Ethics Complaint

2006-08-12T22:53:00.000-07:00

"Howard" Dean Heller seems to have another ethics complaint against him. I don't know much about it, but see what Nevada Up North has to say about it.

God Bless Charlie Daniels

2006-08-12T22:41:00.000-07:00

I just got home from a show at the Grand Sierra Resort. I must say, I have seen quite a bit of live music, and that may very well have been the best show I have ever seen. Every musician in the Charlie Daniels Band is an elite musician. That's not the only reason I am so excited.

Charlie Daniels has just returned from a USO tour and whole heartedly supports our troops. Imagine that. Someone in music that isn't a Liberal. Anyway, Charlie is an outspoken conservative who even goes so far as to write songs about God. He also said the pledge of allegiance, Under God and all, right in the middle of the show.

Tell 'em We're Winin'

2006-08-12T22:29:00.000-07:00

I just got back from a show at the Grand Sierra Hotel (the old Hilton). I saw the Charlie Daniels Band. It was an amazing show, and I will have a little more on that in a later post. What I wanted to share was a particular portion of the show. Mr. Daniels and his band have recently returned from a USO tour in Iraq. He asked a soldier if there is anything he would like to say to the people at home. The soldier only had one thing to say. "Charlie, tell 'em we're winin'".

Dean Heller’s Not Fooling Anybody

2006-08-08T20:47:00.000-07:00

He claims to be a conservative but the poll numbers from KOH’s debate on the Bill Manders Show yesterday say otherwise. Here is what the conservative radio audience thought.

After yesterday's debate on the Bill Manders show, which candidate for congress would you support in the primary election?
Results:

13% Dean Heller

62% Sharron Angle

11% Dawn Gibbons

11% I don't support any of them

Govenor Debate Round 1

2006-08-04T19:23:00.000-07:00

I will be blogging the debate as it happens (hopefully), so check here for analysis and updates.

*Update*
Sorry, but I just couldn't type fast enough to have it live. I should have my notes posted very shortly.

*Update*

Okay, I tried to my best get as much as I could include here. It was very difficult to type fast enough to catch it all. I got what I felt were the most important parts. Everything in italics is my opinion. Nothing here is quoted word for word, it is all summarized. What I am posting right now is just the first portion of what I have.

Bob Beers introduction

Bob Beers talked about TASC in his introduction. TASC had the most signatures of any petition ever.

Loraine Hunt introduction

Hunt was very scripted. She hit on education and health care but she gave no details. It was like she knew those were hot buttons and she hoped she would earn votes just by mentioning them.

Jim Gibbons introduction

Gibbons just kissed butt. He thanked everybody with a pulse before he started. He appealed to blue collar talking about his dad being a railroad worker.

Beers first question

What is your stance on immigration?

Beers wants secure our border. On the state level, Beers wants all government documents to be in English only. He wants immigrants to learn English first, before being taught other subjects. Beers would require people to present ID prior to voting.

Loraine Hunt (same question)

Hunt comes out saying she has a better understanding of the immigration issue because she is from a family of immigrants. It's America, aren't we all? She would like to secure borders first. She proposes no public benefits to illegal immigrants. She had a very similar message to Beers. That's a good thing. It's a good message.

Jim Gibbons (same question)

Gibbons proposes to secure borders first. Then he said he opposes amnesty, but supports a guest worker program. Is your politician speak detector going crazy like mine is?

Loraine Hunt question

What is going the wrong direction in Nevada?

Once again, lots of sizzle, no steak. The economy is the key to everything, but she gave no details. She is doing an excellent tap dance to avoid taking a real stance.

Gibbons (same question)

He says he wants to keep our taxes low.

Bob beers (same question)

Bob said thank goodness for California. They are causing our economic growth. He says our biggest problem is that government is growing at twice the rate of growth of citizens plus economy.

Gibbons question

What would you do to fix education?

Gibbons says accountability is the key. He was quite clearly trying to throw a buzz word out there. He gave no details as to how he would increase accountability. Gibbons would give freedom and flexibility to teachers and schools. He would get more money to classroom. He would also shrink administration to ensure more money gets to the classroom. He is on point right there.

Beers (same question)

One of Beers' solutions was to break up Clark County school district.

Hunt (same question)

She says education is the highest priority. Teachers are most important tool for education. She would create financial incentives to hire better teachers. She seems to have all talking points and no substance.

Beers Question

What would you do with the budget surplus if we had another one?

Beers would eliminate the gas tax. He says it is a poor designed tax because based on pennies per gallon. As the price of gas goes up, the tax does not. Also, as gas mileage improves, the tax becomes less effective.

Question: So would you rebate the surplus?

Beers says he would ensure the state had a large enough rainy day fund. Then he would ask the voters if they would like to apply the surplus to a special project. That worries me! After that, he would rebate the rest.

Hunt (same question)

She is clearly reading talking points.

Gibbons (same question)

Gibbons say the surplus cannot be used to grow government. He said surplus means we are overtaxing Nevadans. He really hit the nail on the head there.

*Update*

Hunt question

How would you balance demand for water between rural and urban Nevada?

She hit on talking points about bringing Nevada new businesses. She wants to protect rural area water and would protect it in urban areas. She really didn't say anything.

Gibbons (same question)

He is looking for alternative sources to water. He talked about working an exchange with California.

Beers (same question)

He went to fast for me to catch any substance.

Gibbons Quetion

Defend your stance on minimum wage.

He says it takes more than 5.15 per hour to get people out of poverty. Gibbons said housing, gas, and food can not be bought on that. Gee Jim, has it ever crossed your mind that minimum wage wasn't meant to support a family? Did it ever occur to you that you may want to learn a skill before starting a family.

Question: Do you think a minimum wage of 8.25 per hour would hurt economy?

Gibbons doesn't believe it would hurt Nevada's economy.

Beers (same question)

Beers outlines that minimum wage increase is being proposed by the culinary union. The proposal would keep minimum wage in Nevada a buck higher than the federal minimum wage. The bill also exempts unions. Beers says there are better way to raise wages. He proposes provide better education including vocational training for those kids not fit for college. Can you hear the teachers union cringing? With this plan people would be able to build their own lives. Are you sure Bob? I mean self sufficient people? What a revolutionary concept!

Hunt (same question)

She said minimum wage does not take people out of poverty. Since when is the purpose of minimum wage supposed to lift people out of poverty? She said giving them an extra buck will not take them out of poverty. She would rather put it toward health care.

Beers question to Hunt

I didn't catch the whole question, but he brought up cease and desist letters. He asked her to defend the charges. Yeeeees! Homerun question, Bob!

Hunt

She said they are not just charges, they are facts and she can defend those facts. She said Gibbons flip flops on issues.

Hunt questions to Gibbons

Her question was to fast to follow.

Gibbons

He said his vote not for sale.

There was a great exchange here where Hunt nailed Gibbons, but I couldn't catch it all.

Gibbons question to Beers

Why did you vote for record budget increases? This was an easy one. Bob better nail it.

Beers

He told Gibbons to be honest with voters. Every budget in the last 60 years has been a record budget. Gibbons voted for records as well. Beers says record growth required record budget. Did Gibbons really think that question was fooling anyone?

Gibbons says Beers voted for more spending than Dina Titus.

Hunt Question to Beers

Will deconsolidating the Clark County school district put the new smaller districts at risk of falling behind No Child Left Behind?

Beers

Beers said the optimum number of students between six and thirty thousand. Deconsolidating would leave the district between those numbers.

Gibbons question to Hunt

Explain your tax increase in 03

This lead to Hunt talking in circles for a while.

Beers questions to Gibbons

Beers started by saying Gibbons 2/3 initiative was poorly written. He outlined too much pork for me to keep up with. Then asked Gibbons, how can you win?

Gibbons was very condescending to Beers. Not the way I would expect a elected official to talk to anybody. He spoke about all of his votes to lower taxes.

Beers said 70% of Nevadans support TASC. Why do you oppose it?

Closing statements

Gibbons

He did a good job of playing the experience card and talked about being a fighter pilot. He really played up the military roll.

Hunt

Thanked Gibbons for finally showing up and Beers for always showing up. I laughed about that one for quite a while. She doesn't believe Gibbons has the leadership. She also took on TASC. She very discreetly used the tired old children will starve line.

Beers

He addressed his own pay hike. He mentioned that every one of Gibbons pay raises exceed what a congressperson makes in the state of Nevada.

Strike Up a Loss for the Unions

2006-08-02T16:55:00.000-07:00

It looks like the initiative to create a special tax for the Stations casino will not be on the ballot. The Las Vegas Sun has an article about it here. The union tried every trick in the book to dress up this discrimination as a service to the community.

Under the initiative, the proposed Station casino along the Mount Rose Highway or others built outside downtown, airport and convention center tourist areas would have been required to donate money to help pay off debt for the Reno Redevelopment Agency.

Required to donate, huh? The left is getting really good at finding seemingly harmless names for a new tax.

The union also wanted us to think they really cared about us and really wanted to pay off our debt. A little further into the article we find out what's really going on.

...union has been harassing the Las Vegas-based company for 15 years because its casinos are nonunion.

Luckily for us, not many people fell for it.

What a Great Race in CD2

2006-08-01T21:18:00.000-07:00

I am a strong supporter of Sharron Angle and I have even spent a little time volunteering for her. What I really love about this race is that it is all about being the most conservative. The candidates in the race are all trying to "out conservative" the others.

Assemblywoman Sharron Angle's claim to fame in the Nevada Legislature is that more than any other lawmaker, she is the only 'no' vote on scores of bills that pass out of the Assembly.

Read the rest...

Nevada court fight starts over eminent domain limits

2006-07-20T19:46:00.000-07:00

It may not matter if the voters want the opportunity to vote on public domain, the trial lawyers may not allow it.

LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Various government entities and other groups and individuals went to court Thursday to block a ballot proposal to restrict land seizures by government agencies.

The Clark County District Court lawsuit seeks a finding that the Nevada Property Owners Bill of Rights proposal be declared illegal and kept off the November ballot. Advocates of the plan recently qualified for the ballot with 109,454 valid signatures. The minimum needed was 83,184.

Read the rest...

Don't Mess With Israel

2006-07-12T20:06:00.000-07:00

I think that has become quite clear over the last few days. If you haven't heard, Israel has not only moved into the Gaza strip in search of their kidnapped soldier, but they have now moved into Lebanon in search of soldiers kidnapped by Hezbollah. You can read more about it here. What I want to know, is what is the U.S. going to do here? If we are really committed to the global war on terror, will we have a better opportunity than this? Hamas and Hezbollah are two of the largest terrorist organizations in the world, and one of our closest allies already has them on the run. If we capitalize properly on this opportunity, we could strike a serious blow to worldwide Islamic terrorism.

Entrance into this conflict by the U.S. would most certainly mean full scale war in the middle east. It is my firm belief that a U.S. presence in this conflict will encourage Iran and Syria to bring military force.

With that being said, I think Iran and Syria on jumping into this conflict no matter what. Tehran is going to see this as a perfect opportunity to spin this into the holly war they have been trying to start. I see no reason to give them the opportunity to strike first.

Of course, this is all just my speculation, but strategically speaking, the next few days may be quite interesting.

You Won't Find Military Innocence in the MSM

2006-06-26T20:38:00.000-07:00

Of course they wasted no time in skewering the Marines in Haditha. John Murtha was in a hurry to jump on board. Now there is strong evidence that everything happened just the way the Marines said it did. Newsmax has the article here. There is now video from a UAV that shows the story the same way the Marines told it. The conclusion of the investigation is still to come, but I am confident these brave young men will go down in history as heroes.

Only in America, does the media and one half of the political structure automatically assume that our military is lying and the enemy is telling the truth.

NICPAC Brings Chris Simcox to Reno

2006-06-05T21:43:00.000-07:00

Chris brought his message from the frontline of the war for border security. He message is simple. If Washington doesn't take our national security seriously, he does. Together with his Minuteman Civil Defense Corps volunteers, we will secure our borders.

Sharing the stage with Mr. Simcox were Rosa Villanueva White, vice-chair of the Club for Sound Government, Richard Disney, candidate for Assembly District 26, and yours truly.

At the end of Rosa's speech, there wasn't a dry eye in the house. Rosa is a proud American whose parents came to America from Mexico. She had a very clear message for the radical activists of the open borders crowd; "You don't speak for me".

Richard Disney told the crowd he will fight to enforce the immigration laws Nevada has on the books if elected.

Chris Simcox also spoke to us about the story we don't hear much about. Coyotes (Mexican immigrant smugglers) leaving families and sometimes large groups to die in the Arizona desert. There is a whole struggle going on there that we don't hear much about.

You see, these coyotes are giving kickbacks to the corrupt Mexican officials. Due to this situation, Mexico is really offering no help to people with immigration hopes. These people then turn to coyotes for help.

Chris has personally aided in saving live of hundreds of people who have been left to die in the desert. His mission goes far beyond the security of our country. He knows that securing the border would save thousands of lives each year; lives of those who will have the opportunity to become Americans.

Todd Zuccato Takes the Reigns

2006-05-26T22:03:00.000-07:00

You may have heard by now that Eric Odom has stepped down as a director of NICPAC. Eric is an extraordinary individual and will be greatly missed. In Eric's absence, I have stepped into the Executive Director roll at NICPAC. It is a very exciting opportunity for me, as I have stepped in at an excellent time. Eric, Mathew Comprix, and I have been able to generate a lot of momentum in NICPAC over the last few months, and Matt and I are going to take that momentum and run with it.

NICPAC has been under assault from several directions in the blogosphere lately, and that is wonderful news. Before you think I have lost my mind, let me explain. People don't waste time attacking people who are insignificant. The fact that the attacks and accusations are coming means we are making people uncomfortable.

There is a second piece of good news that comes from these attacks. They are attacking us personally and fabricating conspiracy theories of scandals. Why is that positive? It means they can't touch us on policy.

I am honored that my associates nominated me to take the Executive Director position and I hope you will all stick around to see what happens. We have an opportunity to make a serious impact on Nevada politics and I could not be more excited.

I love Nevada

2006-05-26T21:35:00.000-07:00

There are about a million reasons why, but I want to share one with you. I came here from the socialist state to the left of us almost three years ago now. I just bought a motorcycle from there, and I had some challenges getting it registered here in Nevada. Now, in California, even getting to speak to someone about your DMV problems requires an act of God or an assault riffle. I e-mailed a complaint to the Nevada DMV and the very next morning I had a response. Not only that, but a very nice lady spent all day working on my problem. She even got the paperwork I need faxed over from California for me. I still had to go to the Truckee DMV to straighten things out, but it was a breeze when I got there because I already had all the paperwork I needed and I knew it was filled out properly. I love Nevada.

I'll Take It

2006-05-16T22:19:00.000-07:00

I don't for one minute think the President's plan that he outlined last night was a good one. It reaks of amnesty, no matter how he spins it, but I will take an added five thousand bodies at the border. Even if they are just for show, the more the merrier. No matter what comes of the illegals that are in this country now, no plan can be considered a victory unless it has a severe impact on the number of new illegals pouring across the border on a daily basis. It is my sincere hope that the National Guard can do that. Now that the Senate seems to be on board with the amnesty plan, I really hope the House has the guts to stand up and stop it.

Don't Be a Terrorist

2006-05-16T21:57:00.000-07:00

I think that's the moral of the NSA phone records story. I am all for my rights. I would be the first person to stand up if they wanted to start listening to my phone calls and taping my conversations with my family; but that's not what's going on here. The NSA is simply tracking patterns in calls made to determine suspicious activity. If this seriously concerns you, you may want to reconsider to whom your phone calls are being made. Our world changed on September 11 (though many on the left seem to have forgotten) and the measures we must take to protect ourselves changed as well. If the NSA wants to know how many times I called Aunt Betsy, so be it. If that's what it takes to find out how many times a jihadist has called his support network for wire transfers to buy fire arms, I am all for it. Once again, if this really bothers you, you may want to seriously reconsider to whom you are making your phone calls.

This Scares Me

2006-05-15T21:28:00.000-07:00

I was collecting signatures for the Angle property tax initiative, and a gentlemen was asking me some questions about it. Then he said to me, "I don't think the union supports this." He was probably right. What scares me is what he said next. He said "Well, I can't sign it then." I asked why and he said "The union sends me a newsletter that tells me how to vote, and I just take that to the voting booth with me."
Wow. How many Americans just go to the polls and vote exactly how the unions tell them, with no regard to how it may affect their lives and their rights?
That is not the only experience I had while collecting signatures that disturbed me. I was talking to two little old ladies about the Angle initiative. They were very supportive of it and also signed TASC. They were pretty much as conservative as they come. Then they asked me if I voted for President Bush. I responded, "Yes. Both times." That started it a fire. I got an earfull from those two ladies about what a terrible president he has been. On many accounts, I would agree. Where we had a disconnect, was both ladies would have preferred the democrat candidates, having no understanding that they disagreed with those candidates on nearly every issue.
The democrat party and the main stream media have scared the general public about "evil Republicans" so badly, many people vote against them purely out of fear. Many people in the general public just vote for the democrat with no understanding of their far left policies. I hope that in the next six months before the election we can work to correct this. So if you are taking the time to read this, please spread the word. If it is not about this blog, tell your friends about another conservative blog. There are some good ones linked on this site, and they are easy to find through almost any search engine. If we do not work quickly, we may be in for a rough two years.

Election Year Etiquette

2006-05-04T23:01:00.000-07:00

It was mentioned to me the other day by a Republican I respect, that myself and other conservatives need to lay off of the establishment GOP until after the election. My response? No way, no how, not a chance. While I understand where he is coming from, we conservatives can no longer sit back and stay quiet while a whole new batch of RINOs glide into office. People like Eric Odom and Chuck Muth are going to be essential to the upcoming election. There are some true conservatives in Nevada, and it's up the non-establishment conservatives to stand up and point them out.

The GOP wants us to believe that if we don't show a unified front, the Republican voters will stay home. That's 180 degrees wrong. The Republicans voters are going to stay home if they think this is just another election where your choice is between a liberal Democrat and a liberal Republican. The Republican voters will turn out if they feel like this year will be different. They will turn out if they feel like they can actually make a difference this year. People will turn out if they feel like there may actually be some real conservatives in this race.

Mark DeStefano

2006-05-04T22:07:00.000-07:00

Mark DeStefano is the clear choice for state treasurer. As a director of NICPAC, I have already endorsed Mark for state treasurer. Until Tuesday, I only supported Mark's politics. I had the honor of having Mark at my house Tuesday evening for a meet and greet. Now I not only like his policy, but I really like Mark as a person. He took the time to meet my friends and talk to us on a personal level. He has a great background in business and finance. He is an unquestionable conservative and a very intelligent individual. In my opinion, Mark DeStefano would most definitely be an asset to the Great State of Nevada.

GOP Rift

2006-04-28T20:41:00.000-07:00

I had a chance to speak with Samantha Stone on KOH with several other conservatives and Republicans. KOH has it featured on their website here.

No Big Surprise; Reid Is Wrong Again

2006-04-20T21:11:00.000-07:00

Harry Reid is on Drudge here saying we do not have the resources to use military force in Iran. Either Reid is just playing partisan politics, which is always an option with Harry Reid. The only the he stands for is that he is against the Republicans on everything. What a great way to run a party. Wait to see what the other party stands for, then stand for the opposite, regardless of your personal values.

The other option here is that Harry Reid really does not understand military strategy. The effort in Iraq at this point is almost exclusively controlled by ground troops. Any military action in Iran would be primarily an Air Force and Naval action. The only discussion at this point involves tactical strikes on targets, not an invasion. We have plenty of military force to use it on two fronts; especially considering the focus would be on separate branches of the military.

Rally Pictures

2006-04-15T22:03:00.000-07:00

Homerun for NICPAC and Protest Warrior

2006-04-15T21:58:00.000-07:00

NICPAC and Protest Warrior hit a homerun with their Pro America Rally in Carson City. Thank you to all the other organizations that showed up in force. Over 120 people gathered at the Capitol Building in Carson City today. Flags were plentiful among the crowd, and I have pictures of it in the post above.

I should also have video soon or at least audio, of our brilliant speaker, Richard Disney. Disney is an unquestionable conservative and Republican candidate for District 26. He told a story of how his wife immigrated to this country from Peru more than ten years ago. Inspired by Disney's speech, many told stories of how they and their families immigrated to this country from countries all over the world. Rosa White, a Hispanic American, also told us about her feelings here. I also have video of a great interview with Eric Odom, one of the directors of NICPAC and an organizer of the event here. I apologize the audio is not great, it is tough to hear over all the honking and and yelling. This was powerful statement about how Americans feel about immigration. As Americans, we are proud of the diversity that has made this the great country it is today. A diverse nation, built by legal immigrants.

Progress In Iraq

2006-04-10T21:02:00.000-07:00

I just saw this article on MSNBC.com. Since it was taken from the main stream media, you have to search for the good news in it, but it can be found. US troops have been forced to take back control over security of certain areas of Baghdad.

“To be perfectly honest, they were a little (angry) that we came back into their sector,” said 1st Lt. John Ford of Houston. “It’s getting to a point where they don’t want or need us. It’s unfortunate because we have a lot of assets to bring to the table.”

While Lt. Ford sees this as unfortunate, I see it as progress. A little anger from the Iraqi security forces means they are taking a sense of pride in the job they are doing and the security they provide. We inch closer every day to seeing a free, independent Iraq.

Comments From Iraq

2006-04-10T19:40:00.000-07:00

The BBC has an excellent article on the state of Iraq. The comments in it are all from Iraqi citizens. While they still don't describe Iraq as the place it once was, not one of the portrays the US liberation in a bad light. You won't find the main stream media here in the US bringing a story like this. For some reason, the liberals in this country don't feel that the Iraqi people deserve to be free. Or at least they don't feel that the Iraqi people deserve freedom bad enough to do something about it.

Why Liberals Disdain The Military

2006-04-07T19:31:00.000-07:00

Courtesy of Richard Disney on Battle Born News:

I recieved the following just a few hours ago in an email from my buddy Major Rob Hemmer, U.S. Army, who is currently deployed to Iraq. This is the raw and unedited opinion of an army officer currently serving in Iraq now on his second tour (at least). MAJ Hemmer is writing about John Kerry because Kerry is just now coming out with statements calling for withdrawl of U.S. Forces from Iraq.

From Major Rob Hemmer:

John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, Ted Kennedy, Howard Dean nor any other bona fide liberal speaks for the American people, but they wish they did.

Please do not misunderstand me. I’m not talking your run of the mill Democrat. I am not deriding the Democratic Party or the millions of Democrats who support the military in both words and deeds. I’m not talking about Joe Lieberman or the former senator Sam Nunn, but the liberal faction of the Democratic Party that thinks “cut and run” tactics require some depth of character and bravery in the face of a determined enemy. I’m talking about the draft dodger Clinton and his administration’s eight years of disdain for the military and the men and women serving in uniform. I am talking about Kerry who used his military service as an opening act to his character as a politician.
(more..)

Are There Some Real Conservatives Left?

2006-04-07T18:40:00.001-07:00

I was beginning to wonder. I am very glad to see (at least for now) on the Reno Gazette Journal website today that the Senate Republicans refused to offer amnesty to illegal immigrants. These people are criminals and should be treated as such. There are legal channels to enter this country. Hundreds of thousands of people enter this country legally each year. What makes these people so special that they get to break the rules? This is America. You are welcome here. We have jobs for you here. We have homes for you here. We have a place for you here. We ask only one thing. That you come here legally, through our proper channels. Is that too much to ask?

Disney Gets The NICPAC Endorsment

2006-03-31T21:43:00.000-08:00

Richard Disney, canidate for assemble district 26, thanked NICPAC for their endorsment on Wednesday. Here is what Richard had to say.

What Are They Protesting?

2006-03-31T19:16:00.000-08:00

It is no secret that Hispanics have been protesting all over the country for the past several days. What I really want to know is, what are they protesting? The Las Vegas Sun asked this very question and got some very interesting answers.

Heleodoro Carillo, 14, an eighth grader at a Las Vegas middle school said he joined the protest after arriving at school "so we can take off the law."
"They want to put the law at the border so Mexicans can't cross," Carillo said.

No one ever said that Mexicans can't cross. We are only asking you not cross illegally. Is it to much to ask that when you visit another country, you don't break law? I don't blame him, though. The boy is only 14 years old. It makes me wonder what kind of terrible inaccurate information the kid gets from his family, friends, and school teachers.
The Las Vegas Sun spoke to another protester and got equally uninformed comments.

Ashlee Espinoza, 16, who attends Desert Pines High School, said the government is unfairly targeting Hispanics.

"It's not fair that they just focus on us," said Espinoza, who was born in Santa Maria, Calif., and has live in Las Vegas for nine years. "I'm an American. Some of us we didn't cross the border, the border crossed us."

The government is targeting Hispanics? I must have missed the part of the bill that read "Only Mexicans are to be punished for entering the US illegally. All other races should be set free and congratulated." I do have to say, I like the attempt to spin off a Malcom X quote. I am very curious how she determined this bill targets Mexicans. If Mexicans receive any punishment for being here illegally, it's a night in jail and a trip home. If an Arab were caught in this county illegally right now, would they receive the same punishment? Doubtful. More likely they would be interrogated and held for quite some time. Not to mention of all his or her friends and family would be brought in and interrogated as well.
Let's face it. Students of all ages have been walking out of schools all week long to protest and they are really not sure why.

Does Our Government Keep Us Broke?

2006-03-30T19:44:00.000-08:00

In many ways our economic system is designed to keep us broke. Take our federal reserve for example. Here is a very simple explanation of our federal reserve. The federal reserve determines the interest rate at which banks borrow money and therefore sets the rate at which we, the general public, borrows money. If the government would like to spur our economy, they lower rates and encourage us to go into debt. I am not going to explore the differences between good debt and bad debt here. Hopefully if you don't already know, I have inspired you to go find out. So we have borrowed money and now we are spending it and the economy has picked up pace. But what is the long term outcome? Now instead of saving our money, we are out spending it and accruing new debt, to ensure that for many years to come, we will not save anything, and instead pay loads of interest to the banks. Congratulations, we have now secured the financial future of the bank. Now that we know the bank is safe, what happens to people who have saved nothing in their golden years? They end up trying to retire on social security. If you want to spur the economy, give us a tax break. Atleast then the money we are spending to spur the economy is ours, and we will not be paying it back for up to thirty years. I want to make clear,this is by no means an attack on the federal reserve. The Fed does an excellent job with the resources they are given. Besides they are the least of our problems.
Let's take a look at our tax structure. What is the biggest tax break most people will receive? For most people, it will be the interest you pay on your home. Sounds like a good deal right? You pay a lot of money for your home and would like to get some of it back. Now I want you to look at the long term effects. You spend many years paying off your home, but as you get closer to owning it, your tax break goes down. Not only that, but as your tax break goes down, your income is going up (in most cases). So what advice does your accountant give you? You need a bigger house, so you won't get hit so hard in taxes. If you had simply kept that house, all the money you saved from not having a house payment could have been directed towards your retirement, and your golden years would not be spent under the golden arches. Instead, you traded up, bought the bigger house, got the bigger tax break, and began living paycheck to paycheck, again. By giving people an immediate tax break, the government is ensuring these people will need government assistance in the future. Once again, a short term solution to a long term problem. Shouldn't we give the tax break to the person who paid their house off? Atleast then we have taken some positive action to encourage the population to be financially independent in retirement.
While we are on the subject of retirement, let's take a look at the retirement vehicles available to us here in America. The most popular of which is the 401k. Hey, this is a great idea. I get to invest money and I get a tax break. Sounds good to me. But is Uncle Sam going to let us slide on these taxes? I think not. When you go to access that money, all of the taxes are due. So let me get this straight. I get a tax break now, when I have a job and an income, but once I am retired, and I need the money the most, now I have to pay taxes? This is in now way meant to be investment advice. I am in no way trying to discourage you from putting money into a 401k. My point is, if you gave me a tax break now, and a tax break later, I wouldn't need to collect social security, and the government wouldn't need my tax money.
This is a wake up call to America. Stop encouraging me to go into debt now, you will just be supporting me later. Stop encouraging me to get a tax break now, you will just be supporting me later.

Call It What It Is

2006-03-27T21:44:00.000-08:00

People all over the country and all over Northern Nevada came out in protest of proposed new immigration laws nationwide. The Reno gazette Journal headline pretty much says it all

Hispanic students protest in Reno, Carson

The news all over the country is reporting this as outrage against new proposed immigration laws. If these laws are so unfair, where are the Canadian protesters? How about the Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, and Korean protesters? They are no where to be found because they understand something very important here. Immigration into this country is a privilege, not a right. That is something all of the protesters have dead wrong. So let's call this what it is. An isolated group of people who for some reason don't feel like they should be required to play by the rules. Our Statue of Liberty says:

Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

No where does it say "bring me your immoral, your unjust, and your criminals." Once again, I am going to call it like it is. If a person has entered this country without following the proper procedures, that person is a criminal and should be treated as such. If we allow these people to stay here and even welcome them, what kind of a message does that send to those who are waiting patiently to enter this country legally? What kind of a message are we sending to the people who have been granted immunity? Please, break our laws. We will forgive you. How do we expect them to follow the rest of our laws when they have already been rewarded for breaking one?

The Soldier

2006-03-22T19:56:00.000-08:00

The Soldier

It is the soldier, not the reporter,
who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the soldier, not the poet,
who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the soldier, not the campus organizer,
who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.

It is the soldier, not the lawyer,
who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It is the soldier,
who salutes the flag,
who serves under the flag,
and whose coffin is draped by the flag,
who allows the protester to burn the flag.

By Father Dennis Edward O'Brien, USMC

March 19th Rally

2006-03-20T19:48:00.000-08:00

Anti-war protesters were surprised to find some rational opposition to their march to the federal building on Sunday. First, I must hand it to the organizers of the protest. They maintained control and we were able to have a peaceful, civil protest with opposing viewpoints standing side by side. With that being said, I found it at least mildly ironic that that the very right the liberals were exercising would be lost in Iraq should they get their way. There was no such thing as a right to a peaceful demonstration under the rule of Saddam Hussein. One must turn on the nightly news for only a few minutes to hear the latest doom and gloom news from Iraq. The country currently requires the help of many thousands of US troops to maintain the level security it currently enjoys. How would an immediate withdrawal of troops solve the problems the Iraqi people face? No rational person would disagree that an immediate withdrawal of troops would leave Iraq in a state of civil war. This would not be a civil war in the sense we Americans are familiar with. This would not be a war of opposing viewpoints fighting against what they believe is an injustice. This will not be a war of army versus army. This will be a war of terrorists against civilians. This will be a war of rape and intimidation. It will be a war of suicide bombings and dead women and children. It will be a war of mass murder and genocide. Is this a war we are ready to let loose on unprepared civilians? Have we become so selfish as a society that we would offer not help to a nation in need?
The Iraqi government is in a very sensitive stage in its very young existence. There are terrorists crawling in every corner of Iraq who would jump at the chance to insert corrupt, murderous leaders to every office in the country. It would not be too long after that the rights our liberal friends like to exercise so much would be stripped from the Iraqi citizens.
One argument our anti-war counterparts favor is that we brought the attacks of terrorists upon ourselves with our foreign policy. I can agree with that, but that is where our agreement ends. We brought attacks upon ourselves through appeasement of terrorism and our cut and run stratagies of previous administrations. This strategy is not party specific and has proven to the world that the moment we begin loosing lives, we prefer to pack up and head home. Enter the Bush administration. Enter a President who has the fortitude to stay until the job is done. Exit terrorism on US soil. I am by no means saying that we will not see another terrorist attacked. What I am saying is that we are slowly winning the war on terror and our dedication to finishing the job deserves a lot of the credit. Since 9/11 there has not been a major attack on US soil. Europe is not able to say the same. Of course, many on the left would suggest that the terrorist attacks in Europe are our fault. Who's in charge of our national security? That's right. We are. And who is in charge of Europe's national security? That's right. They are. It is the duty of each individual nation to provide their own national security. If every nation would take a serious, pro-active stance on terrorism, we would see an international decline in terrorism. Terrorists thrive on fear and weakness. We should all be thankful this administration and displayed neither fear nor weakness to the terrorists or the international community.