Falling behind

Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have risen by 1.7%. Unfortunately, inflation — as measured by the consumer price index — has risen by 2.2% over the past year, meaning average hourly earnings have fallen by 0.5% in real terms.

This will cause far more damage than the "fiscal cliff". What's worse is that most people have no idea this is happening to them ... yet.

From this point forward

I was hoping that the election had turned out differently. But I have become more troubled by larger issues. Among the most concerning is one that gets little to no attention in the press: the decline of traditional marriage.

The MSM only wants to talk about homosexuals getting married. But they refuse to acknowledge the great harm that results when fewer men choose to marry their girlfriends... or even worse, when fewer men marry the mother of their children. The facts are indisputable:

• Children borne out of wedlock are far more likely to suffer sexual and physical abuse
• Single men are more likely to be unemployed (or under-employed)
• Unmarried mothers are far more likely to be poor

Why is this happening? Some might say that pop culture has so glamorized the single lifestyle that people are sorely tempted to pursue it. I disagree. The single lifestyle has always been glamorized, and it has never delivered on that false promise.

What is new, though, is that the traditional family lifestyle has been turned into a punch line. Pop culture portrays the man of this life as far from ideal or attractive or aspirational. Instead it casts him the role of lovable idiot (at best), or malicious oppressor. Why would anyone want to be that guy?

the Likable lie

How can anyone say this guy was ever likable? Almost everything that comes out of Obama's mouth is arrogant, condescending, insulting, or all three! Here's the latest:

At a $20,000-per-ticket fundraising dinner at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, President Obama made a joke about Romney cracking down on the Muppets.

"Finally, somebody is cracking down on Big Bird," Obama quipped. "Elmo has been seen in a white Suburban. He's driving for the border."

Using a murder to score political points? He is unworthy of the office.

Credit where credit is due: Real Clear Politics. Hat tip to Glenn Reynolds, Instapundit

Sometimes the government is just stupid

Microscopically etch an identifying mark on a gun's firing pin. Every bullet casing would be engraved with that mark, and law enforcement would know which gun fired that bullet. Seems like a great idea, right?

Actually, it's hard to count how many ways this is a stupid idea. But Jazz Shaw at Hot Air and Bob Owens at PJ Media itemize just some of the problems with gun microstamping.

Included in the litany of idiocy:

1. The firing pin for most weapons are easily replaced with a $12 part
2. The stamping naturally wears down through normal use, rendering it unusable.

This is what happens when central economic planners get too much power.

No enforcement of the law?

More evidence that this administration seems to think itself above the law.

“We will not use levies, liens or criminal prosecutions if taxpayers have unpaid amounts related to the individual-coverage provision,” Steven Miller, an IRS deputy commissioner, said Tuesday at a House Ways and Means subcommittee hearing. “There will not be revenue agents involved in this. These will not be audits.”
Read more: at FoxNews.com

Not only do they decide what aspects of immigration law they will enforce.
Not only do they pick and choose whether to uphold duly passed laws regarding welfare and work requirements.

But now they are deciding that the funding mechanism for their own signature legislation will not really be enforced.

Open war is upon us, whether we would risk it or not

One of the great mysteries of progressives is how they seemingly refuse to believe that we are not the cause of wars in this world. The only explanation for the act of war perpetrated upon our sovereign land - as all consulates and embassies are designated - is that a specific, identifiable segment of the world's population desires to eliminate our country.

Identifiable? Yes. Islam seeks to rule the world. The infidel has two choices: convert or die. Christianity seeks to rule the world as well. However, the difference is that we do not take it upon ourselves to carry out the sentence of unbelief. True Christians leave that to Almighty God.

So Islam has, once again, attacked our nation. Our feckless leader will denounce it. Maybe he'll send out a few drones. But he refuses to view our situation as war. He refuse to risk open war! Well open war is upon us, whether he would risk it or not.

Why the political is personal

Remember when friends could disagree about politics? Unfortunately, it seems as though that time has past us by. What happened?

There was a time in our history that our interactions with government were quite rare. Daily decisions were not influenced by the policies of the state. If you wanted to build a barn in your backyard, you acquired the resources and built it. If you lacked the resources, you did not build it. If you were unemployed, you went to local merchants and offered to work. You did not visit a government agency to get money or to look for a job. If you needed money, you relied on the charity of your church and neighbors.

Today, the state is now involved in an incredible proportion of our very personal decisions. And since the government is, at its heart, a political entity, political preferences now have very personal ramifications.

In other words, my vote - a political act - now has a personal impact on you. The only way out of this is to shrink the size of the government ... to reduce its influence on daily life.