Exceptional Leadership

Could the difference be any more obvious?  Yesterday I wrote about President Obama and his near infinite reservoir of what America can not do.  No longer is she the shining city on a hill that Ronald Reagan saw, but according to President Obama she is a shack with a burnt out light bulb.

For my friends who enjoy history you will keep in mind that today is the 211th anniversary of Meriweather Lewis pushing off from Pittsburgh Harbor.  The expedition was called the Corps of Discovery and was commissioned by President Jefferson.

The goals were simple.  After the Louisiana Purchase, Jefferson wanted to find the most practical traveling path across the continent for purposes of commerce.  He also wanted to deny the world powers (Europe at the time) the opportunity to make a presence in the New World.  A secondary objective of course was to provide a scientific information about the plants and animals encountered on their adventure.

When Jefferson looked out of the White House he saw a vast land of rich resources and able bodied people.  They had defeated a world power and earned their own rights to freedom.  When President Obama looks out though he seems to see a cup half full.  A people unable to life themselves up and a country whose resources are finite.  He seems to misunderstand that natural resources are dynamic and not a static asset.  He leads from fear whereas President Jefferson seemed to lead his nation from hope.

The second lesson I consider when I think about the Lewis and Clark Expedition is the leadership those two men must have had.  Theirs was a three year trip and it was not long before they were abandoning their boat to move cross country - up mountains - and through forests and fields.  How hard must it have been to map a continent at that time, much less to lead men, across it.

When I think of today that is the leadership I hope for from my brethren here in the United States.  The idea that we can accomplish much if we only go for it.  Leadership can come from necessity, but perhaps we as a nation have become too comfortable with our disposable DVD players, our fast food, and our fake money.  Exceptional leadership does exist, but I think we need to look for it a little harder.

A Great Ten Minutes, But...

I am a ridiculous James Bond fan.  As any James Bond fan will tell you, the first five minutes of the movie are often the best introductions.  In some introductions, Bond has to climb in the back of a horse trailer, then pilots a single man jet or he flies off in an astronaut-like jet pack as he makes a getaway from exercising his license to kill.  These are the hallmarks of the James Bond film series.  However, the latest installment of the Spiderman film series, The Amazing Spiderman 2, might push James Bond for the first five minutes of film action.

I was able to see the film early due to the generosity of Dwayne Harris who had supported the Oak Cliff Boys and Girls Club and was rewarding behavior that was sensitive to our natural resources by treating members of the club to an advance screening of the film.

While the movie had some of the usual non-turns and then wrapped itself in a predictable plot of non-twists, in terms of the first five minutes the action was interesting.  What followed was typical comic book action that follows what would be a script that quickly falls off into what would otherwise be a very average film with the normal non-plot twists and lack of character development.  I have not seen the first film and not sure what characters were previously developed and while the film is okay it was a little light on plot and character development.  Maybe I should have read the comic, but I will say this.  If you can use a film like this to motivate kids to be good stewards of their local natural resources, I say good job.

Waco 2.0

When I look at the situation in Nevada with Clive Bundy and the Bureau of Land Management, it appears to me that I am watching Waco 2.0 all over again.  While Waco involved David Koresh and the Branch Davidians and the possible sexual assault of teenagers and girls as young as nine and ten, it is not clear to me why the federal government feels the need to show up at someone’s property with armed agents and snipers over what is essentially an unpaid parking ticket.

I have no idea the actual penalties faced by Mr. Bundy in terms of grazing fees etc., but what I do know is it appears that we are asking young men and women to go to another American’s house at point of bayonet.  That we threaten violence over these bills in an era where Americans feel more polarized than ever is embarrassing and potentially dangerous.

Our country already feels like they are on the precipice and this can not help the situation any having armed agents threatening an individual like this, much less the ensuing reaction force that are showing up on the fence line as well.  When I look at current media accounts there appears to be almost a demilitarized zone at this gentleman’s ranch and that is not the America any of us should want to live in.

Emminent Domain or Imminent Doom

What's theirs is theirs and what's yours is theirs.

Welcome to big government.  If you think it can't happen, think again.

In Colorado, the local government is horrified that a middle aged couple would use an existing road and a snowmobile to get to property they own and they plan to fix their fears, by condemning the property and taking it from them.

You thought it was only big bad banks that could take things from you.  Think again!  In this story, the couple is having their property the prize in an eminent domain legal battle.  According to legal experts, normally eminent domain is used to provide the government access to land which isn't theirs for purposes of economics development.  In this case though, the government simply wants the land to preserve open space.

I would hate to argue whether or not a land owner has the right to use his or her land as they see fit, but in this case the Barrie family does not even have designs on expanding or trying to do the economics development thing on their property.  The picture from AP also shows the complete smog and problems with overgrowth in an area....except it is only their house and they just want to be able to access it which requires a snowmobile.

Egad!  Again, the sky is falling.

This should be an environmentalists dream come true.  An unheated cabin with a solar panel to power a single light.  Instead, they movement shows what they are really about.  Controlling what you can and can not do.  This is embarrassing and I fault the US Forest Service on this one too.  Year after year, we have ridiculous wild fires caused by their ineptitude and poor management because they play politics instead of science when it comes to the controlled burning of undergrowth.

For those who thought Obamacare was just a blip on the screen, you should be very afraid.  The permutations of having a Congress that can tell you where to live and what to buy are mind boggling and do not belong in a Constitutional Republic, though to echo Ben Franklin, I'm not sure that's what we have any more.