In pure partisan fashion, we are moving toward placing even more control of people’s lives under government control. In this case, health care; this accounts for a sixth of our economy.
In the last year, I have heard people say that the two parties are the same, both disgustingly spending in an unbridled way. I think there is some truth to that however; you must remember that it is Congress that really holds the purse strings to the spending. It’s true, President Bush signed off on this spending, but it was forwarded to him by folks like Senator Obama and Congressman Wu, so let’s not credit President Bush with all the blame for that spending. But I digress…

In my naval career I have seen and found it interesting that some aircraft squadrons and ships have consistent success while others have consistent records of failure. Similar to sports, some teams are consistently successful and some not so much. It is perplexing because often these teams, squadrons and ships have the exact same equipment and quality of people. I have come to believe that the success of an organization lies in the hearts of the individuals within the organization. The individuals in an organization have core beliefs and values that are ingrained into their culture. So, when a new member shows up, they are integrated into that culture perpetuating the track record of success or failure, not so much due to the individual but due to the core values of the culture. I believe countries are the same and perpetuate a certain way of living that reflects their values.

We are at a point in our country’s history where we are making a significant choice concerning our core beliefs. Those core beliefs will determine our country’s success not only in the short term, but probably, for a very long time. The thing that really has me concerned is that I believe the majority still believe and live by traditional core values but a minority has been able to move us steadily towards socialism (government control of everything).

As a country, the United States is one great and successful team. Throughout our history, we have done great things and the world is a better place because of the United States. Our culture is not only one of economic success but also of great compassion and caring. Because of our economic strength and surplus we are in a position to reach out to the world and step up in times of great need. We have a great history of coming to the rescue of the rest of the world, in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East. The United States isn’t perfect, but it’s certainly one of the greatest countries to ever exist. Why we are going around apologizing, I don’t know. It displays weakness that I just don’t see.

Whatever your beliefs, I hope you have a wonderful Christmas Day and are able to enjoy the loved ones in your life. Here is a great Christmas speech from a great President I wanted to share. I’m proud of this country, I hope you are too.