Observations

The United States of America, at this writing (2019), has had a Constitution in effect continuously since 1788, some 231 years. Since its ratification, which included the first ten amendments we call The Bill of Rights , it has been successfully amended 17 times. I cannot support the claims I've heard over the years that the Constitution is outdated, or that -- as amended -- it is inherently unjust. In fact, many of the world's national constitutions have been and are modeled on the US Constitution, regardless of their successes or failures in eradicating tyranny or establishing permanent, democratically-elected executive & legislative systems. I believe as a matter of faith and observation that our Constitution must exist and be followed as is until further amended. It is the best framework in existence which simultaneously balances power of the State with individual liberty and assures the proper relationship between a Federal Government and the governments of the sepa

In an earlier post, I discussed the relationship between the "Deep State" (DS) and the "Administrative State" (AS); how the DS subsumes the AS, and uses it as a tool (some call it a weapon) to achieve its goals. There's another element even more pernicious than the AS, which is just as subsumed by the DS and operates under its manipulation: the political class . Like all the parts of the DS, the political class is populated by people with bills to pay, families to feed, and lifestyles ... all of which need financing . Anything that perpetuates the political class, particularly the incumbency, is good; anything which impedes or threatens the existence of the political class is evil in their eyes. Simple faith is all it requires for membership in the political class: all one has to do is believe that this mass of people, bureaucracy and non-governmental organizations are of value to society, that its working members deserve to live off the taxpayer, and that

I'm stunned by AOC's remarks of yesterday, 12 June 2019, demanding a Congressional pay raise of a measly $4,500 a year on top of an already-excessive salary of $174,000 a year. Let's break that down so we ordinary working people can deal with it. A congresscritter earns $174K, before taxes, a year. This works out to $14,500 per month, or $3,346 per week. For a married congresscritter at their current salary, using the very worst assumptions (no deductions, two dependents total including self, married), the tax liability is approximately $32,000. This would reduce the gross salary to a $142,000 net per year. This is usually called take-home pay, and is not counting FICA/Medicare, state income tax withholding and other factors that further reduce net. For giggles, let's say the congresscritter has a residence in Connecticut, which has a 6.5% flat income tax rate at that income level, for another reduction of $11,500, for a net-net (take home pay) of $130,500 per year