Because We Are Americans

  Today, the new Freedom Tower  being built at Ground Zero in New York City surpassed the Empire State Building as the tallest building in the Big Apple. For a generation of people, September 11, 2001 will be the equivalent of the JFK  assassination. Everyone will always remember where they were and what they were doing.

  America was in a mourning period after 9/11. We mourned those that were lost, and we mourned for what seemed like the loss of our identity as Americans. America is not supposed to get a butt-whoopin' like that. We dish them out if need be. We don't get smacked upside the head, we do the smackin'. We felt bloodied and beaten up. We all watched as President George W. Bush climbed onto that pile of rubble with the firefighters who had been there around the clock, removing pile after pile of debris, and recovering the bodies of their fallen comrades. Someone put a bullhorn in his hand, and without a teleprompter, addressed the crowd. "I can hear you, the rest of the world hears you, and the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon!" At that moment we realized we were down, but we were not out. Because we are Americans.
 So we picked ourselves up, dusted ourselves off, buried our dead, and set about cleaning up that big hole in the ground. We went about choosing what to build there very carefully. After all, it is sacred ground, the final resting place for so many of our loved ones. Whatever we put there had to be spectacular.
 It took us a long time, some say too long. We drew up plans, argued, voted, scrapped those plans, drew up some more plans, and argued some more. Finally, we agreed on the Freedom Tower. When it is finished, some time next year, it will be 1,776 feet, 104 stories tall. The tallest building in the United States. It's height, a reminder of the founding, not only of a place, but an idea. The idea of a free and independent people.
 Those of us with an attitude problem, kind of like to think of that new tower as a giant 1-finger salute to those who believed on that day that they had gotten the better of us. But as the Freedom Tower rises higher and higher into the New York City skyline, we know now that America never went away. We just regrouped and came back better than before. It is what we do.
 Because we are Americans. 


From The Campaign Trail...
   Martin Baker, Republican Candidate for Missouri's First Congressional District, will speak at the TEA Party Express Rally on Wednesday, May 2, from 6:00pm to 7:30pm at the Victory Field House in Fenton
932 A Meramec Station Rd.
Come join us as we get fired up for this year's election!
                             And...
Come meet Martin and the rest of Team Baker as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Valley of Flowers in Florissant at the Knights of Columbus Park 
 50 Rue St. Francois in Florissant      Lots of fun to be had for the whole family!
  Hope to see everyone at these upcoming events!!
        

The Most Transparent Administration?

The Obama administration has been riddled with so many scandals in the past few weeks that it is getting hard to keep up.
  The General Services Administration (GSA), has come under fire for lavish conferences in Las Vegas, racking up approximately $800,000 dollars in food, drinks, and entertainment, all on the taxpayers' tab. The former head of the GSA has yet to say anything about the whole mess except that he is taking the fifth about it, and promptly scurries into the nearest elevator when confronted by reporters.
  The Secret Service it seems has also been partying like it's 2012-Colombian style. At the time of this writing 11 plus agents, including 2 Senior Agents, and several members of the Military are involved. At the center of it all, as far as anyone can tell, is that the guys charged with protecting the President, brought some working girls up to their rooms, and while committing huge breaches in security, also committed other things, like refusing to pay the ladies for their time and efforts.
  So how, if at all, does all of this affect this fall's election? Is this the "transparency" the President spoke of at the beginning of his administration?  The reality is that we are still seven months out, and in the wild and wacky world of politics, it might as well be a millennium. However, these latest nuggets fall on top of the on-going Fast and Furious gun-running investigation, and the implosion of several "green" companies like Solyndra.

  All of the information on these latest debacles is still trickling out. Surely there is much more to come on all of these investigations. But one thing is painfully clear. The Obama administration is rife with mismanagement and incompetence. Just like we expected from someone who has never even had a paper route. The Democrats usually rely on distractions like the whole "war on women" song and dance, and blathering on about comments rocker Ted Nugent made at the NRA Convention. Because Ted has endorsed Mitt Romney, Liberals are now screeching that Romney should distance himself from the endorsement. Yeah. That should take every one's mind off of the thousands of taxpayer dollars wasted, and Secret Service Agents compromising the security of the President of the United States.
  As of this last week of April, the  Rasmussen poll has Romney at 46% and Obama at 45%. Gallup shows Romney at 48%, Obama 43%. And the Fox News poll gives Romney 46% and Obama 44%.
  It will be up to Conservatives to keep the record of the Obama administration front and center in the minds of the American People.
  So buckle up. It is going to be a long hot summer.          

Atttacking Spouses and Kids-Where Is "The Line?"

The mainstream media loves to tap dance on a whole bunch of lines. Most of the time, when any given "line" is crossed, one of them will slap said line-crosser's wrist and wag a finger at them, and everyone moves on to the next victim. But last week, when Democratic Strategist Hillary Rosen attacked Ann Romney by saying, "she has never worked a day in her life.", the question of when, or if, it is O.K. to go after a candidate's spouse or children was once again revisited.
 For most people, the fact that anyone would say such a thing about a woman who is a breast cancer survivor, battling MS, and raised 5 boys on top of it all was insulting to say the least. But is there any situation where the candidate's family members can be criticized?
 It really isn't a new thing. Margaret Truman was the first, first daughter to be scrutinized by a blossoming national media. Amy Carter, who was just 9 years old when her Father became President, was not so lucky in the media department either. As the bias of the mainstream media has made itself known, the spouses and children of Conservative politicians have taken the most heat. When 19-year old Jenna Bush was arrested for a DUI not long after her Father became President, the media was all too happy to "just report the facts."

 On the other side of this coin, When Hillary Clinton headed up "Hillary Care", Conservatives voiced strong opposition to to the tangle of bureaucratic weeds that it was. Michelle Obama's "Let's Move" campaign which includes her involvement in dictating to public schools what can be offered for lunch. Most Conservative parents are not too fond of the First Lady telling them what they can and cannot feed their kids.
 Such hands-on involvement into making government policy, puts one out there so that in those instances, the First Lady, whoever she is, is fair game. Americans have a right to voice their opinion on public policy no matter who is proposing it. Had Ann Romney publicly disagreed with the President on a particular matter, any rebuttal to what she said would have been fair in the game of political back and forth. But that is entirely different from the personal attack that was made.
 As the Presidential campaign heats up, and a Vice-Presidential Candidate is chosen, that person and their spouse and children will most definitely be put through the mainstream media meat grinder. Of course, it is all in an effort to "just report the facts."         
     

NRA 2012- All In

The National Rifle Association held it's 141st annual convention here in St. Louis this past weekend. An estimated 65,000 people attended what was a great celebration of American values and our 2nd amendment rights. The theme of this year's convention being "All In" for this year's Presidential election.
 On Friday afternoon the American Values Leadership Forum was held with speakers like Presidential front runner Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, Texas Governor Rick Perry, and Lt. Col. Oliver North among many others.
 Mitt Romney not only addressed the rights of gun-owners, but that on election night, Americans will not just be choosing a President, but also between two very distinct paths for our nation. He quoted President Harry S. Truman, who warned that, "Liberty can be lost when our most precious documents are not regarded as the supreme expression of our profound belief, but merely as curiosities in glass cases."
 Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich suggested that perhaps the NRA has been too "timid" and should promote it's agenda beyond American borders. He said that, "A Gingrich Presidency will submit to the U.N. a treaty that extends the right to bear arms as a human right to every person on the planet." Rick Santorum praised the NRA for doing a better job than any other group of promoting American freedom. He lauded the NRA as a "vital beacon for individual liberties." He said that it is "essential" to beat Barack Obama in November, speaking of Obama's ability to turn the Supreme Court in a much more liberal direction with any possible future appointments.
 Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, the son of Indian immigrants who came to the United States so his Mother could attend LSU. He spoke of his Father telling him and his brother that they were not owed anything, and whatever they wanted to achieve in life they could because they were Americans, but they would have to be willing to work hard.
 Lt. Col. Oliver North gave an emotional presentation of pictures and stories of our brave fighting men and women on the front lines in Iraq and Afghanistan. There surely was not a dry eye in the auditorium when he was done. The sacrifices of our soldiers and their families ensure that not just the second amendment, but all of our rights and freedoms are protected. How do we begin to thank them?
 The Exhibit Hall was a vast display of every kind of firearm, knives, and ammunition gun-owners might need. Outside the Convention Center were a handful of protesters voicing their opposition to gun ownership. How ironic that inside the Convention Hall were no doubt thousands of current and former law enforcement officers, and current and former members of the Military who, at one time or another had risked their lives so that anti gun rights protesters just like them could stand outside an NRA Convention in the rain to protest.


From The Campaign Trail...
  Join Martin Baker, Candidate for Congress in Missouri's 1st District for a very important event.
    A Cardiac and Stroke Screening at the office of Dr. Helen Gelhot, MD
 Wed., April 18 from 8:00am to 5:00pm
  inside the MIGUN Smart Spa
   11455 Olive Blvd.
  Creve Coeur, MO in the Dierberg's West Oak Shopping Center between I-270 and I-170, next to Great Southern Travel
   Pre-registration is required
   For information or to register, call 314-576-0094
   Hope to see you there
      
       And...

  If you would like to volunteer to help to send Martin to Washington D.C and end 62 years of one party rule in MO District 1, we are always looking for more helping hands! Just go to:
  staff@martinbakerforcongress.com and sign up today!!  
               
   

And Now, For A Little Something Different

For those of us who already have a serious case of George Zimmerman/Trayvon Martin fatigue, Let's talk about something slightly more interesting. This week, the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic will be observed. There are few events in American history that divide years in before and after. The sinking marked an end to so many entrenched attitudes and societal norms.
 So many things have taken place in that 100 year span of time. America has seen 17 Presidents, 2 World Wars, inventions that have changed daily living not just for Americans, but the world. But what things have we changed about ourselves, as a people in that time?
 America was still very much a growing country in 1912. Immigrants from all over the world came to this country with literally whatever they could carry on their backs, not knowing the culture or the language, but with the drive, the willingness to work hard, and the passion to build a better life for themselves and their families. And most of all, they wanted to become Americans.
 If nothing else, Titanic was a microcosm of the fairly strict class system that existed in America in 1912. The wealthy and famous made up the luxurious first class cabin suites, complete with servants' quarters and private baths. If you were aspiring to be one of those first class ticket holders, but not quite there yet, you landed in second class. Very lovely accommodations, but not quite up to first class standards. Then there were those immigrants who dreamed of the promise of America. How ironic that their first taste of life in their adopted homeland would come from down below in third class.
 America still had an innocence about her. The horrors of the first World War had not yet taken place, American women had not yet taken up the fight for the right to vote. If you owned an automobile, your American dream had no doubt been achieved.

 But has the American personality changed? Like anything else, some is good, some, not so much. Opportunities for Black, Asian, and Hispanic Americans, as well as other minorities is the exact opposite of what it was in 1912, which was non-existent. The same for women. The idea that one can go from starting out in a lower economic class, and move to a much higher one through education and hard work is much more attainable. But are we more tolerant, kind, giving of ourselves, and just plain nicer? As is typically American, we have lots of opinions on that question. If all of those people who perished that fateful night could come back and see America as she is now, 100 years later, what would they think about who we have become?
 We can only hope that they would like what they see.       

The Richard Jewellization of George Zimmerman

The on going investigation into what happened the night that George Zimmerman shot Trayvon Martin in what Zimmerman claims is self defense is just that, on going. But since when did a few facts, or the lack thereof ever stop the media?
  Case in point. Richard Jewell. A security guard at the time at Piedmont College, doing security work for the Olympics held in Atlanta in 1996. Jewell found the back-pack with a pipe bomb in it just minutes before it was set to go off. Initially, he was deemed a hero and credited with saving countless lives. But then something happened. Three days later, it was reported by all of the usual suspects, NBC, CBS, ABC, CNN, a never-ending alphabet of shoddy reporting, that the FBI was considering Jewell a "person of interest" in the bombing that killed one and injured hundreds of others.
  Richard Jewell's life as he knew it would never be the same again. The FBI searched his home, questioned his associates, investigated his background, and had come up with a sort of "lone bomber" profile that the media was all too quick to latch on to. The fact that he was an adult male living with his mother only added to the media's stereotype of what they assumed a "lone bomber" must be. Only after his life and the lives of those closest to him were completely destroyed did the FBI administer a lie detector test that he passed, and their case against him started to crumble. In the end, Richard Jewell was never charged with a crime.
  Enter George Zimmerman. We are still not clear as to what exactly happened that night. We are still waiting for the likes of Jessie Jackson, Al Sharpton, and the Congressional Black Caucus to back off and let the agencies charged with investigating this case actually do their jobs. But one thing is becoming extremely clear. The mainstream media is in no way interested in facts. As soon as they had a black victim and a "white" shooter, it was off to the races. We are now finding out that NBC did some creative editing to make Zimmerman sound like he was targeting Trayvon Martin merely because he was black when we now know that they cut out the part where the 911 Dispatcher asked for a description of Martin. The Dispatcher is heard in the original tape asking if the person Zimmerman saw was White, Black or Hispanic. ABC News showed a tape of Zimmerman being led into the Police station, seemingly injury free, when we now know that that tape was "edited" as well, and the original tape clearly shows injuries to the back of Zimmerman's head and a swollen nose.
  So the question has been asked before. Should George Zimmerman not be charged with a crime when the investigation is complete, where does he go to get his good name back? Jessie? Al? The CBC? Maybe the New Black Panthers will just pat him on the back and say, "Sorry my brother, our bad." The answer is nowhere. He will spend the rest of his life in the shadow of this case no doubt having trouble getting into school or finding a job or anything he might have given a thought about going on to do. He will get no letters of recommendation from the alphabet media, who will have moved on to the next poor slob that Jessie and Al deem a "racist" for yet another made up narrative of a white guy stalking a black guy.
  Because of the race industry and it's founders, Jessie and Al, and their all too willing accomplices in the mainstream media, sadly, there will be more Richard Jewells and George Zimmermans.
 This industry, unlike a lot of others, shows no signs of slowing down.

If you like my blog, check out my other articles at Examiner.com under - http://www.examiner.com/conservative-in-St.-Louis/Rebecca-Noble