February 2^nd marks the half-way point between the Winter Solstice and the Vernal Equinox.  And, on that day in the little town of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, Phil the groundhog will emerge from his burrow to determine whether Winter will continue for six more weeks or an early Spring will commence.  Not merely in Punxsutawney, but also in other locales in the United States, Canada, and Australia will this ritual play out.

During my lifetime, there have been many Groundhog Days, more than I care to admit.  And, during that span, not one time in my recollection has Phil been unable to see his shadow (the condition necessary for the prognostication of an early Spring).  During that period, there have surely been many cloudy February 2nd’s.  In fact, on one particular Groundhog Day, the fog that morning was so thick that one could barely see his own outstretched arm, let alone see a shadow.  Yet, it was reported that Phil saw his shadow and Winter would continue for another six weeks.  From the foregoing, I can come to but one conclusion, and that is that groundhogs or their handlers are notorious liars.

At this time, in the United States, we find ourselves at another midway point.  We are midway through what has, in recent election cycles, become a two-year quest to win the Presidency of the United States.  During this period, Presidential aspirants burrow out from wherever they have been hibernating, test the political climate, and make a decision as to whether or not to seek the Presidential nomination of their political party.  Unlike Punxsutawney Phil, their ultimate decisions are not predictable.  Like Phil, however, there is a good deal of prevarication in their messages.

In recent Presidential election cycles, success has followed a relatively simple formula.  First, cultivate a base of support.  Second, utilize that base to generate hundreds of millions of dollars or more of funding, thereby demonstrating to members of your party that you have the resources to be a winner.  Third, moderate your positions to broaden your appeal without alienating your base.  Elegantly simple, yet surprisingly difficult to execute, the formula has been critical to success in both securing party nominations and winning the ultimate prize, the Presidency.

The problem with the formula and the entire electoral process is that, in order to be elected, candidates must lie to the voters.  Euphemisms aside, assuming that a candidate defines himself accurately to his base, his redefinition for mass appeal must then be a fabrication.  In concrete, yet simple terms, Democrats begin by appealing to a predominantly liberal party base and  Republicans to a conservative base to secure the Presidential nomination of their respective parties.  To win the election, however, the successful candidate must hold his base while gaining the preponderance of the vote of the more moderate majority of voters in the populace at large.

In practice, this means changing positions, renouncing or explaining away previous positions, or making promises that contradict stated positions or established values.  Yet, one must assume that once elected, that individual will govern from his core principals.  What then is the general electorate to make of the reversals and promises made to win election to the highest office in the land?  In my opinion, they represent distortions of true positions at best and outright lies at worst.

And, the problem seems to be worsening over time.  As candidates “keep their eyes on the prize” in an increasingly lengthy nomination and election process, they seemingly will do or say anything in order to win.  Our Founding Fathers, I believe, would not approve.

The purpose of national elections, in my estimation, is to allow competing ideas and philosophies to be soberly debated with the electorate being the final arbiter of the direction in which our country is guided.  As candidates misrepresent or obfuscate their true positions, voters are denied the ability to make an informed decision and effectively disenfranchised.  Given those circumstances, one might just as well vote for Punxsutawney Phil. 

The term sound money, also known as honest, strong, or hard currency relates to its value in terms of the world’s standards.  For example, when you visit a foreign country, you may be compelled to exchange your U.S. dollars for the coin of the realm if you wish to purchase goods, pay the fee to enter a museum, or do anything else that a tourist may wish to do.

This is just what I did when I traveled to Italy in 2000.  At that time, the rate of exchange was 2,000 liras to every U.S. dollar.  Thus, by exchanging 100 of my U.S. dollars, I received 200,000 liras.  For the first time in my life, I felt like a millionaire!  But when I purchased food, wine, or gifts for my family back home, I learned that the prices of these commodities were inflated, thus creating a money system that paid 2,000 liras to every one of my little ol’ U.S. dollars.

Liras or dollars, Euros or rupees, the real value of money lies in its purchasing power in the world market.  In my lifetime, I have witnessed and felt the affects of deflation and soaring inflation, and I am not alone.  Many are those who remember “the good old days” when our money went a helluva lot further than it does now.  In fact, cyberspace is abuzz with such memories, in the form of circulating e-mails concerning the prices of yesteryear.

For instance, in the 1920s, three pounds of steak cost 50 cents in a typical New York City butcher’s establishment!  And this was a retail price paid by regular consumers, not a wholesale price.  During the Great Depression, a new automobile cost $800 dollars.  Today, the average new car, not a luxury car, can run as much as 40 times more: $ 32,000!

Most of us simply accept the fact that we must pay more for the same goods that we once bought for far less.  Escalating prices are like a ladder whose summit is always out of reach, and a very familiar ladder at that.  We’ve been conditioned to accept the concept and the harsh realities of inflation.

It’s easy to blame inflation — the dwindling purchasing power of our money as reflected in the costs of goods and services — on the greed of the manufacturers.  Manufacturers are those that produce finished goods as well as those that produce merchandise, such as automotive parts, that contribute to the manufacture or assembly of finished goods.  And it would be right and just to lay blame at the manufacturers’ feet.  But where does the government come into this equation?  Are our lawmakers exempt from blame?

Some suggest that they are.  Some suggest that the American Constitution, as written by our Founding Fathers, states that U.S. currency is to be backed by precious metals (gold and silver).  If our government followed these guidelines, it would place limits upon the amount of paper money and coins that it printed, minted, and distributed via the Federal Reserve.  Some believe that the more money we print or mint without limitation, the more the currency could be considered counterfeit as per their interpretation of the Constitution.

When crafting this part of the Constitution, our Founding Fathers no doubt relied upon the history of gold’s stability.  From the days of the ancient Pharaohs, gold has been the one commodity, worldwide, that has never devalued.  Gold has, in fact, risen in value over the years, representing the one form of monetary exchange that has remained unshakable during times of economic flux and crisis.  So sure a bet was gold that our government kept its stores under lock, key, and guard, at the United States Bullion Depository, a fortified vault adjacent to Fort Knox, Kentucky.

On March 14, 1900, the Congress of the United States signed into law the Gold Standard Act. This, in essence, established the price of gold at $20.67 per ounce in U.S. money.  This was in force until the Great Depression.  In 1933, under the threat of a collapsing, paper money-based economy, President Franklin Roosevelt denied private gold ownership to its citizens, with the exception of jewelry.

In 1946, the Bretton Woods system was enacted to fix the exchange rate.  It allowed foreign governments to sell gold to the U.S. at the price of $35.00 an ounce; this continued until August 15, 1971.  In 1971, then-President Richard M. Nixon ceased the trading of gold at $35.00 an ounce.  For the first time in history, formal links between major world currencies and real commodities were severed. The gold standard has not been used in any major economy since.

Today, almost every country, including the U.S., is using fiat money, defined as “money that is intrinsically useless,” used only as a medium of exchange.

Doesn’t that make you feel secure knowing that your money, whether it’s stored under your mattress or in a savings account, has no worth if the economics of the country should change?  Maybe it’s time to spend that useless money for something real!  “Don’t get stuck holding a bag of useless money” may emerge as yet another quote from a White House insider.

Maybe that’s why Publishers Clearing House is giving away “A Million Dollars a Year for Life” and why President Obama is borrowing trillions of Chinese fiat dollars, because … it’s only paper!

Do insiders know what the government doesn’t want its people to know?  “The people” of course are you and me and our neighbors, the average taxpayers, the ones left holding the bag when calamity strikes.  The cold hard fact is that money used for solely exchange purposes is governed by the supply and demand of consumers.

For instance, if people stopped buying gasoline, the price of gas at the pump would dip to twenty-five cents a gallon due to the lack of demand.  If you recall just a few years ago, consumers did manage to drive down the price of gas without so much as anything as organized (or disorganized) as “Occupy Wall Street.”   The price of gas had gotten so high that many people nationwide began to carpool and also cut back on unnecessary trips by car.  The gas companies felt the pinch and thus lowered prices at the pump.  Slowly and inexorably, however, those prices have crept back up.   They did so due to supply and demand.  Once the prices went down, more people stopped carpooling and engaged in their normal driving activities; therefore, they needed (demanded) more gas!

Thus, we “the people” are doomed to be the victims of devalued currencies.  If money were to become sound once again, it would regulate prices because it would be in demand.  Until and unless it does, the guys holding the useless money — the average taxpayer — get shortchanged.  And that’s no pun.

Nearly 40,000 new laws go into effect this year.  Some will have less impact on American’s everyday lives, others will be very influential.  Below you will find some of the most influential and interesting laws to go into effect in 2012.

Minimum Wage

The following 8 states will be raising their minimum wage in 2012:  Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Montana, Ohio, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington.  Additionally, the city of San Francisco will raise its minimum wage, making it the highest minimum wage in U.S. history.

Illegal Immigration

Several states will see laws affecting illegal immigrants go into effect:

Alabama employers will now be required by law to use E-Verify, a federal system that verifies that employees are in the U.S legally.

Georgia will begin implementing a similar system similar to Alabama.  A gradual implementation, by July of 2013 Georgia will require all businesses with more than 10 employees to use the E-Verify system on new employees. 

Tennessee will also implement a system like Alabama and Georgia’s; the state will see a law that requires all business with 6 or more employees to utilize the E-Verify system on employees. 

South Carolina will implement a law that allows for businesses to have their licenses rescinded if they do not use E-Verify on their employees. 

California will implement several immigration related laws.  For instance, undocumented state university students can now receive payment for working in student government, and private financial aid.

Other Laws

California

By law, California schools will now require that gay and disabled people who made historical contributions to the world be included in their educational teaching programs.

Illinois

Motorcyclists can officially run red lights after waiting a, “reasonable amount of time,” at a red light in Illinois.  Very interesting also is that another law going into effect will allow schools to expel or suspend students who threaten school personnel or other students online; this law is an obvious response to the cyber bullying issue that has come to light recently.

Michigan

Michigan sees a change in its hunting laws.  Now children of any age can hunt under the condition that they are accompanied by someone who is aged 21 or older.

New Hampshire

Young girls seeking abortions are now required to either tell their parents or go before a judge before they can legally have an abortion.

Rhode Island and Tennessee

Both states will implement a law that requires all voters to present a photo ID when they go to vote. 

Utah

By law, restaurants, bars, and so on can no longer offer drink specials in an effort to cut down on drinking and driving.

Amber Paley is a guest post and article writer bringing to us some of the laws that go into effect in 2012.  Amber also writes about nursing home abuse.

Sometime before recorded history, mankind … some of mankind, anyway … learned that to trade with others was neater than killing to possess what another had.  Thus, the barter system came into being.  Swapping one’s goods for another’s goods was expedient, until the concept of money came into play.

One of the earliest forms of money was salt, for in the days before refrigeration, salt was essential to the preservation of meat, and meat (protein) was essential to the preservation of human life.  People would hand over a bag of salt to whoever had goods they’d wanted to acquire; the size of the bag varied with the asking price of the goods.   When people learned to extract salt from the sea and primitive mines, it became more plentiful and so, the mineral no longer enjoyed as great a demand.  Humans then began to barter precious metals instead of salt, bars of gold and silver.  Somewhere along the way, some genius determined that paper money and small coins minted from gold and silver were easier to cart around on one’s person than gold or silver bullion.

Eventually, the acquisition of money — wealth — became an end in and of itself.   The more wealth one acquired, the more power one possessed and the more avaricious one became.  Whether acquired by a feudal overlord who kept his serfs under his thumb for their most basic necessities, or a conglomerate or huge banking institution abusing its power, money and the urge to possess mass quantities of it became the root of all evil.  For as Jesus Christ warned, “It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.”

Despite Jesus’ admonition, greed — nor William Shakespeare’s reproach, “Neither a borrower or a lender be” — never gave the mega financial institutions a moment’s pause.  If one did not possess the amount of money he needed to acquire the basic necessities (i.e., a home), one knocked on the doors of the financial giants.  Behind those doors, the giants grinned and rubbed their gluttonous hands together, plotting to become more profitable.  Thus was born the practice of charging interest: additional fees for money lent to consumers and other businesses, and additional monies given to consumers or other businesses that allowed the banks to use their deposited money to the bank’s own ends.

While most banks pay out interest to their depositors in the neighborhood of 5% or lower for keeping a saving account open, the institutions charge as much as 30% in interest to consumers who apply for and receive credit cards from the banks.  And, it doesn’t stop there!  Some banks sold mortgages to naïve borrowers who paid back only the interest; their paybacks were never applied to the principal!  Legislation was then enacted to protect the consumer against such practices, thereby creating the amortized loan.  Amortized over a span of many years, each monthly mortgage payment was then applied to interest as well as principal.

Although our current laws demand that banks must be transparent with lenders when selling different types of loans, the banks always find a way to screw the little guy.  It wasn’t enough, just before President George W. Bush left office, that he and his cronies bequeathed $710 billion in bailout monies to the big banks and insurance companies.   Greed is a hungry monster that is never satisfied.   Banks such as Bank of America, to name one, were then caught red-handed, charging their customers for incidentals such as the use of debit cards, or the more prevalent practice of charging as much as $30.00 for bounced checks written out for far less than that amount.

When called on the carpet about those bounced check fees, a representative of Bank of America blatantly stated, in a formal, public announcement, that although her bank would rectify that situation, it would still find ways to extract extra cash from unsuspecting customers! And only a recent uproar from the general public, overturned the fee that Bank of America wished to attach to the use of debit cards.

Although banks may advertise their services as “free checking,” “free online banking,” and other freebies, the truth is another matter.  “Free checking” usually requires a minimum balance of $100 in one’s checking account.  “Free online banking” permits the bank to pay the float on your money, as most banks can take up to 5 days to process a transaction you request.

In all cases, the banks keep a portion of our accounts, to do with as they please, without paying us interest.  Government at the Federal, State, and local levels probably use these same, self-serving practices.  If you doubt this, consider tax credits issued to taxpayers.  These credits are not given in monetary form, but in the form of a statement.  The taxpayer uses the credit and the debtor accepts it without any money being transacted.   The debtor is satisfied, but what about the taxpayer?  He or she never saw any money in the first place, so how can they be sure that they’d really received a credit or just a statement to placate the masses and keep even more money in governments’ pockets?

Yes, the manipulation of money is highly profitable, if the right ones are holding the sacks of dough, that is.  Have you noticed how the devaluation of money was achieved by manipulating public perception?  Not very long ago, millionaires were considered rich beyond the wildest dreams of most people.  Now, millions are chicken change.  Billions, trillions, and quadrillions are the way to go, the path to overwhelming wealth.   All of this money is ground out and doled out daily by the Federal Reserve Bank (but not to hardworking taxpayers).  When money is printed and exchanged in billions and trillions of dollars, its purchasing power will diminish to the point where dump trucks will be needed to carry it to market … again, not by the average taxpayer, who actually work for his or her living.

Those dump trucks may not be all that far behind.  Remember how gold and silver bullion was abandoned in days of yore, in favor of lighter paper currency and coins?  Well, recent trends indicate that savvy (read: rich) investors are returning once again to gold bullion as a hedge against a tanking economy.  If we as a nation should return fully to the gold standard, our present-day U.S. dollars would shrink in number.  And those of us who cannot afford to buy gold bullion will, once again, be screwed.  But the banks will still stand strong.  Who said feudalism is dead?  It may be some time before I get to heaven, but when I do, I’ll wager that there are more camels up there than rich bastards.

“Ask not what your country can do for you,

but what you can do for your country.”

(President John F. Kennedy)

Although John F. Kennedy’s reign as our nation’s 35th President was all too brief, he left behind a legacy of courage in action.  This included his support of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., resulting in the passage of legislation that led to Constitutional equality for people of color.  These and other acts identified JFK as a President who truly cared about the citizens of this country.  After his assassination, eight Presidents succeeded him.   In none of them have we, the people, found a leader who has measured up to JFK’s strides toward a better future for every American citizen.

In the 48 years since JFK’s murder, promising and seemingly sincere Presidential candidates have come and gone.  Some were defeated in the November elections by those who took office in the White House; some were defeated by carefully calculated political assassinations before their names could ever appear on a Presidential ballot.  Herman Cain was one of those candidates in the latter category.

A product of the School of Hard Knocks and a successful businessman, Cain understood firsthand the plight of the American people.  He understood how we have suffered under a government that stole from the poor and gave to the rich, the powerful, the callous, and the undeserving.  In response to this situation, Cain crafted an original plan, 9-9-9, designed to restore fiscal and economic sanity to our nation waiting too long for a savior.

But, an old scandal — which Cain had resolved legally years ago — resurfaced via his political enemies, causing him to bow out of the Presidential race.  So much for the land of the free and the home of the brave, eh?  Had Jesus been in the same race, his detractors would no doubt have nailed him to a political cross rather than a wooden one.

Cain, however, refused to die.

Just when America thought he’d gone away quietly and for all time, Cain has returned to offer us a measure of hope.  Like a Phoenix, he is rising from his own ashes by bringing 9-9-9 before Congress.  He aspires to achieve the bi-partisan support needed to endorse his plan before the 2012 election occurs. And, he has called upon the electorate (we, the people) to issue an ultimatum to their representatives in Washington, DC: “Endorse 9-9-9 or lose our votes!”

If we, the people, rise to Cain’s challenge, we can effect positive change in this nation.  I speak of genuine change, not the type of change promised by previous administrations, including the incumbent President, who never delivered on their promises.  By following Cain’s lead, we can alter the tax code, increase revenue, and put America on the road to financial recovery.  The true beauty of this plan is that we can accomplish this regardless of who is elected President!

God willing and we do accomplish this, history will record the logic, vision, and perseverance of a man who put country first in times of crisis and left an indelible mark upon its political scene: Herman Cain.

If you are interested in making history, if you are interested in putting a stop to the royal screwing that we, the people, have been getting for far too long from our lawmakers, support Herman Cain’s 9-9-9 plan.  Visit his website and vow to make you, your family, and JFK proud by doing something of true value for your country. 

Related Articles:

The Cain Scrutiny

Innuendo

Farewell Citizen Cain

When humans began to walk upright, they relied upon the five senses endowed by The Creator to survive in a harsh environment.  Along with the organic senses of sight, smell, hearing, touch, and taste, God in His infinite wisdom included an innate sense of awareness.  This “sixth sense” existed to clue early man into the fact that danger, in the form of predatory animals, an unforgiving landscape, or inimical tribes, were lurking nearby — even though undetected by any or all of man’s five senses!   This awareness, if you will, served as a survival mechanism.  As humanity evolved, so did its sense of awareness.

Awareness is the factor that puts one initially on his guard.  Once those factors have been carefully weighed, awareness allows one to make the decision to trust — or not.  Trust, in turn, is defined as:

1.       Assured reliance of the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something.

2.       Dependence upon something, future or contingent.

3.       A property interest held by one person for the benefit of another person or persons.

The word trust is used in various situations, most commonly, with respect to relationships (i.e., lovers, friends, partners, employer and employee, etc.) or contractual agreements (i.e., marriages, businesses, the transfer, purchase, or sale of real property).  Trust is something that is earned, and it takes time to earn it.  It is never given lightly, like a cheap prize won at a carnival.  Now just past the threshold of a brand new year, the word trust has taken on deeper, more ominous meanings.

Given the current state of the world, with its widespread economic woes and proof of governments who care nothing for their citizens, the concept of trust has been tested to the limits.  In years gone by, we, the people, trusted in our lawmakers.  We trusted them to represent us, the voters; we trusted them to pass legislation for the good of the majority.  We define “majority” here as the bulk of our populace, meaning, not a relative handful of politicians, not the wealthy, and not special interest groups.  We define “majority” as the middle class (the workers, those who must earn paychecks in order to survive).

In the past, our lawmakers have, more often than not, earned our trust. If you, dear reader, doubt this, think of the great lawmakers and law-influencers of American history.  Think of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, Abraham Lincoln, John F. Kennedy, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: all men who put the greater good above all else.

Now, however, our lawmakers seem to be on the side of the “haves” rather than the “have nots.”  As this reality is revealed more and more with each passing day, we find that we must ask our lawmakers the following questions:

1.       Must we, the people, accept a global society?

2.       Do elected representatives defy the will and needs of their constituents?

3.       Do we need a private bank to sell and purchase U.S. dollars?

These are just a few questions that concern and frustrate the American people as we struggle to remain a free and open society.  Clearly, we don’t trust our government or big business as we once did, and this is not good for the nation.  Without trust, our economy would crumble; credit without collateral would be non-existent.  With less consumer demand, fewer products are produced in this country, and the loss of manufacturing has had a negative, domino effect upon all other industries. Thousands of people who are unemployed will be forced to sell their possessions to survive — if they can find buyers with the desire and wherewithal to purchase what they are selling.

Perhaps, God saw the lay of the land from the very moment that he created Adam and Eve.  Perhaps, He foresaw a human race that would evolve and lay claim to immense strides in science, medicine, and technology.  Perhaps, He foresaw governments later leading their citizens down the road to perdition.  And perhaps, that is why we, as a race, have retained that special sixth sense linked so closely with trust.   This is food for thought as we cull and consider the list of hopefuls vying for the highest position in the land: the Presidency of the United States of America. 

Frequently dubbed the sport of Kings, horse racing provides the origin of the phrase “dark horse,” an unknown horse on which handicappers have difficulty in establishing betting odds.  Later, the term was broadened to apply to any unexpected winner.  In American politics, the term was first applied to James Polk who, in 1844, wrested the Democratic Party’s Presidential Nomination from a field of well-known candidates en route to winning the Presidency that year.

2012 is shaping up as a similar type of year – albeit, on the opposite side of the ledger – as Republicans seek a savior to help them recapture the Presidency, lead America back to its capitalist roots, and rescue the Grand Old Party (GOP) from its own historical proclivities.  Noted for its pattern of nominating the next person in line (i.e., the runner-up in the previous Presidential election cycle’s nominating process) – particularly when running against an incumbent President, the Party has nominated such lackluster candidates as Bob Dole and John McCain, candidates who were not really in step with the Party’s conservative mainstream.

This cycle, it appears to be Mitt Romney’s turn.  Lacking the passion and conservative chops that the Party’s faithful desire most, Romney has been challenged by a host of candidates whose primary credential for the Presidency is that each is not Mitt Romney.  And so, we have seen the rise and subsequent fall of Michelle Bachman, Rick Perry, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich, and Ron Paul (whose fall is still in progress).  Thus, it appears likely that when the smoke clears, a bloodied Mitt Romney will prevail as the Republican Nominee.

But, something is different this time.  Hailed as among the most defining elections in our nation’s history, the 2012 Presidential Election – coming as it does at the conjunction of the Great Recession, jobless recovery, declining middle class, rising income inequality, worldwide financial crisis, international political and social unrest, exponential growth in healthcare costs, and growing class of senior citizens expecting to receive entitlements in the form of Social Security and Medicare to which they have been paying taxes their entire lives –  may well determine America’s future course.  Are we still going to be a country “of the people, by the people and for the people,” or will we go down the same road as previous republics such as the Roman Empire?

Some, many in the broadcast media included, want the United States to become a European-style social democracy.  Founded on the principles of personal liberty and economic freedom, America and its capitalistic system have been viewed by many as a “shining city on a hill.”  Yet, unfettered capitalism and its close relative, free trade can create a cold, cruel world for those who do not attain at least a middle class income – a class which, by the way, is ceding many of its members to poverty.  Capitalism and free trade care nothing about people, only about costs and profits.  And, our public policies, economic system, and the rise of multi-national corporations are among the most significant reasons why American jobs are being exported to other parts of the world.

Yet, not everyone in our society must adhere to the laws of competition.  As was evident during the economic crisis of 2008, we live in a country that practices Socialism for the wealthy and Capitalism for the working class.  Taxpayer dollars have been used to bailout corporations and financial institutions, despite the fact that these enterprises created the situations that bankrupted them and ultimately used bailout funds to reward their executives through lavish bonuses.  Social Security contributions are still being dumped into the general tax fund and used for projects other than that for which they were intended.  Whatever happened to the Social Security Lock Box?!?

Among the most tried and true paths to wealth in our country is by gaining elective office.  Our political leaders are all extremely well off financially.  They live by a different set of rules, have their own healthcare system, and exempt themselves from many of the laws that they pass (e.g., laws preventing those with insider knowledge from profiting by virtue of that knowledge).  Yet, absent a significant bankroll, the little guy seeking entry into the national political scene is largely shut out; unless, of course, he can secure the support of wealthy Godfathers to whom he will be indebted when he assumes office.  And, when it comes to running for the Presidency, outsiders are not welcome regardless of their financial status.  Remember Herman Cain.

Social programs that make life in America a little less harsh and cruel to the poor and working classes are deemed welfare.  Yet, subsidies to industries (like the now bankrupt Solyndra) are termed investment.

Charity is the balm of a capitalistic society, the salve that eases the consciences of today’s Ebenezer Scrooges – the one percenters like the members of Congress and the captains of industry enriching themselves on the blood, sweat, and tears of their underlings.  Like the unrepentant Scrooge at the beginning of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, they seek profits first, with their consciences and concerns for others running a distant second.

Home and property ownership, hailed as the American Dream and one of the pillars of our society, is a farce, because you never really own your property if you cannot afford the taxes.  Many seniors living on fixed incomes have become increasingly aware of this situation as their fixed incomes vanish before the tidal wave of increasing property taxes and costs of living.  What will become of the American Dream?

In this great struggle to reclaim the soul of America, we the people can only hope for the emergence of a dark horse who has the best interests of our citizens and country at heart.  Then, perhaps, we can create a new America where individual freedom is tempered by compassion, and we reclaim our place as the moral and economic beacon to the rest of the world.

According to a report on NJ.com, the identities of Motor Vehicle clerks and other co-conspirators (complete listing below) engaged in the sale of driver licenses to illegal immigrants has been revealed.  In at least one instance, Social Security numbers to carry out this fraud were obtained illegally from a Motor Vehicle database.  This news coming just weeks after two New Jersey Motor Vehicle clerks, Sherilyn Rivera, 28, of Reeves Avenue in Hamilton and Johnny Semmon, 31, of Center Street in Trenton, were charged with official misconduct, bribery, and identity theft for allegedly selling the confidential information (including Social Security numbers) of New Jersey drivers shatters any illusion that residents of the State may have had regarding the integrity of those in its employ.

According to NJ.com, this most recent criminal activity was a true conspiracy, involving not only the clerks but brokers and intermediaries including runners and middle men.  The brokers would identify prospective customers, help them to fill out the paperwork, and accompany them to a Motor Vehicle office where a crooked clerk would issue the license and sign off on documents indicating that they had provided adequate proof of identity according the State requirements.  So much for the State’s 6-point identity verification program!

Acting as collections agent, the broker would split the haul with the clerk and any runners or middle men engaged in securing the prospective customer or making contact with the unscrupulous clerk.  At $2,500-7,000 per license, the participants in this latest scam on the public make the $200 charged by Rivera and Semmon appear negligible.  And, with at least 40 licenses sold in this manner, had the scheme gone undetected, it would have been a Merry Christmas indeed for the rogue’s gallery listed below!

While New Jersey’s Attorney General and the Chief Administrator of the State’s Motor Vehicle Commission are lauding themselves over the indictment of these individuals, one wonders what damage has been done to the residents whose sensitive information has been compromised.  If the procedures in place to detect criminal activity of this nature have been effective, why did it take the sale of 40 licenses before identifications were made and action taken?

And, how is it that these crooked clerks secured their jobs in the first place?  What standards and criteria were employed in their hires?  With unemployment levels ballooning in this State, could not employees with more honesty and integrity have been found?

As citizens of New Jersey, we have a right to expect more of our government and governmental agencies at every level.  The instances above beg the question of how many undetected instances of identity theft are perpetrated by state employees at every level of government.  As information, particularly identity data, becomes a progressively more valuable commodity, these types of crimes by those feeding at the public trough are likely to become more prevalent.  Absent the ability to protect themselves, our State’s citizens must hold our elected leaders accountable to see to it that safeguards are enacted to combat this problem.

Below are a list of those charged with this most recent crime:

LODI MOTOR VEHICLE AGENCY

MVC Clerk

Anne Marie Manfredonia, 43, of Little Ferry

Broker

Hildeberto Salinas, 43, of Carlstadt

Customers
1. Abraham Chali, aka Carlos Jacobo, 26, of Cliffside Park
2. Miguel G. Sacoto, 35, of Jersey City
3. Melvin Lita, aka Arben Lita, 33, of Fair Lawn
4. (Juan) Pablo Gavilanez, 26, of Irvington
5. Jose Pelaez, 26, of Bloomfield
6. Gustavo Pamavilla, 22, of Irvington
7. Roberto Yumbla, 27, of Irvington
8. Ana Altamirano, 39, of Newark
9. Ariolfo Altamirano, 42, of Newark
10. Luz Alvarez, 32, of Hackensack
11. Omar Avila, 33, of Newark
12. Claudio Angamarca, 26, of Newark
13. Aurelio Aju-Chitic, 31, of Fairview
14. Sandra Avendano-Marin, 26, South Hackensack

EAST ORANGE MOTOR VEHICLE AGENCY

MVC Clerk
Laquanda Murray, 28, of Newark

Middlemen
Jason P. Thomas, 28, of Irvington, a former MVC clerk
Tyrone Q. Canada, 26, of Hillside, a former MVC clerk

Brokers
Martin A. Martinez, 53, of Newark
Antonio Vasquez, 40, of Hillside

Runners
1. Virginia Martinez, 41, of Somerville
2. Guillermo “Willie” Prieto, 50, of North Bergen
3. Rogerio DaSilva, 36, of Cliffside
4. Gustavo Valencia, 68, of Morris Township
5. Domingos Bonela, 48, of Kenilworth

MVC Clerk
Rashaan A. Smith, 31, of Irvington

EDISON MOTOR VEHICLE AGENCY

Brokers
Martha Jalil, 54, of Dover
Ricardo Jalil, 63, of Dover (Martha’s husband)

Customers
1. Delmis Urquia, 43, of Hackettstown
2. Fredy H. Quiroga-Cobos, 34, of Dover
3. Jaime E. Espinoza, 38, of Dover
4. Constantino Grandados-Hernandez, 41, of Dover
5. Julio C. Rios-Elejalde, 33, of Wharton
6. Carlos R. Ramirez-Yepes, 52, of Morristown

JERSEY CITY MOTOR VEHICLE AGENCY

MVC Clerks
Sonia Noel, 48, of Union City
Melody Noel, 26, of Union City (Sonia’s daughter)

Broker
Peter Loveras, 32, of East Rutherford

Customer
Hernan Chica, 53, of Hackensack

NORTH BERGEN MOTOR VEHICLE AGENCY

MVC Clerk
Cristian J. Toledo, 33, of North Bergen

In the beginning, God created light to take us out of darkness.  Between the dawn of time and 2011 A.D., man has done a helluva great job of blotting out the light, particularly here in the alleged Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.  American citizens are besieged by economic blight, characterized by rampant unemployment, jobs outsourced overseas, and Social Security jeopardized.  Capping off these woes is a political system run by men paid off by Corporate America’s lobbyists, men far more concerned about lining their own pockets than providing concrete solutions to the constituents who voted them into office.

But yea, unto this darkness came a light at the end of the tunnel.  The name of this light was Herman Cain.

As a 2012 Presidential hopeful, Cain possessed more than a modicum of common sense.  A far cry from the wealthy braggadocios that America has elected for too many decades on the strength of their empty promises, Cain was a hard-working man who understood the plight of the average taxpayer.  As a Black American, he made no bones about his struggle to make it here.  His strong work ethic enabled him to attain the American dream, a dream he hoped to give American citizens via election to the highest office in the land.  A dream he hoped to implement through modification of tax codes, ensuring that taxes would then provide enough revenue to run the country efficiently.

But now, those dreams have been shattered.  Darkness once again engulfs us.  Cain has dropped out of the race on the heels of allegations of sexual misconduct with a consenting adult woman, misconduct that occurred and was settled legally years ago.   In his farewell speech, Cain declared that the negative press hurt his family, hurt him, and most of all, hurt the American people.

Cain had brains, balls, and a sound work ethic.  What he did not have was cutthroat political savvy born of covering one’s ass time and again with the American public.  Cain lacked the experience of his smarmy competitors: politicos who retain spin-doctors for hefty fees — fees, no doubt, footed unwittingly by taxpayers.  The spin-doctors lie between their teeth, bail the  politicians out of sticky situations, and allow them to emerge smelling like roses in the wake of allegations and scandals.

Any American-born citizen, such as Herman Cain, can run for the office of President of the United States … on paper, anyway.  The harsh reality is that anyone can run, but only the lying, wealthy bloodsuckers, a.k.a., the seasoned politicians, have a real shot in the race.

R.I.P., America’s dreams of transparency in government and economic recovery. 

In the maelstrom of the Herman Cain debacle, the word “innuendo” was bandied about.  It was used to describe the chain of events that now plague this Republican 2012 Presidential nominee.

The meaning of “innuendo”, according to Miriam Webster, is: a veiled or equivocal reflection on character or reputation.  Its synonyms are listed as “hint” and “insinuation.”  As you can see, innuendo never relates to “fact,” whose meaning, as per the above-named source is, a thing done.

Armed with this knowledge, one can see why the accusations against Cain are referred to as “innuendo” or “insinuation,” because of their lack of factual information.  Once an accusation has been established as fact, it is not innuendo or any of its synonyms; it is a truth.   But, I’ll admit, that’s how it goes in an ideal world.  Ours is anything but ideal!

In Herman Cain’s case, he states that he has been falsely accused due to a misunderstanding of a situation that occurred many years ago.  His accuser, however, has remained anonymous for obviously unstated “personal reasons.”  What was once a settled agreement between Cain and his faceless accuser has blossomed into a witch-hunt.  It’s opened up a Pandora’s box to more aggressive innuendo, in search of monetary rewards from the campaigning Presidential hopeful.  At least, that’s what it appears to be on the surface.  Scratch a little deeper, however, and it may very well be a political conspiracy against the only candidate who actually seems to represent the people of the United States and not Big Government.

Cain’s unfortunate situation is a lawyer’s dream, a chance to make not hay, but money, while the sun shines.  Most out-of-court settlements, such as that of Cain and his accuser, are resolved because of the cost involved in bringing the matters to trial.  For all the lawyers know, they may lose their cases if push comes to shove and a trial ensues if one of the parties refuses to settle out of court.  In a case such as Cain’s, it comes down to “he said; she said.”  And again, we come full circle, right back to innuendo.

“He said; she said” cases are tests of power, much like one gladiator fighting another in the ancient Roman Coliseum.  Power equates to money.  The party with the most money to spend on a long, drawn out case usually emerges the victor.  The one without the power (money) usually emerges somewhat bloodied.  If the party is a political figure (i.e., Herman Cain), it will be more than bloodied: it is usually a death knell to the politician’s attempt at gaining public office.

Sometimes, statutes of limitations keep these types of cases out of court. Or, double jeopardy protects the defendant from being tried again for the same charges.  However, the law is not cut and dried; U.S. law was not designed to be cut and dried.  This is the reason behind so many precedents being established and integrated into our legal code. It’s also the reason for attorney Alan Dershowitz’ statement that, “although the law is legally right, it does not have to be morally right.”

The facts of the Herman Cain case are as follows.  If Cain had never attempted this run for the Republican Presidential nomination, he would not have achieved his current media notoriety.  Had he not become a frontrunner, the faceless “she said” never would have brought up the subject again!  The innuendo of Cain’s life would have gone unnoticed; the media never would have reported it.  And it would not have tainted his campaign.

In defining the word “innuendo,” I asked an old time friend of mine, Joe Bananas if he ever heard of this word.  Joe’s response was, “Yeah. I think we used to call it the Italian Preparation H.”  ’nuff said!