government | Piss and Moan

Fraud

Posted on May 26, 2020 by backuphill

grayscale photography of stop signage under sky

Photo by Alexander Kovalev on Pexels.com

Confirmation.

Only it isn’t the kind our state needed or wanted. Yet, we now know without a doubt that the governor and the health department had an alternative agenda. Revelations like this have a pretty serious implication on the state’s economy, but literally on lives of people who never had the virus, won’t ever have the virus, but are struggling with the isolation or unemployment.

Not only is our state the victim of a massive fraud in unemployment claims, but the governor seems unwilling or unable to deal with it. Instead, he cancels his usual briefing and sends an underling to take the heat. Leadership, eh?

Now, we have confirmation on how the governor’s agenda has played out. Many people, in states all over the US, have suspected for a long time that deaths in their states were being reported as “covid deaths” even though the person died of other causes. Pad the numbers. Make it look worse than it is. Justify lockdowns and killing jobs/the economy by making a totally survivable illness more dangerous than it is. Inflate the numbers for an agenda.

Are you people paying attention to what is going on in your state? Your country? Are you taking the government at its word or are you just hunkered down in fear, waiting for when they tell you “it is safe to come out”?

Conspiracy? No. But there are definitely some who are taking advantage of you while you are living in fear and being distracted by infectious chaos. Do you still believe that all who are in government are looking out for your best interest? If you do, no matter what side of the aisle you are one, then you’re naive at best…but I fear that maybe, if you are one of those who takes everything the government and media tells you without skepticism and cynicism, that you are something worse than naive.

And that is something to fear.

Agenda?

Posted on May 22, 2020 by backuphill

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Something you might wanna check in your state, especially if your state is being slow on opening up the state because of the pandemic.

As you know, the governor here has an alternative agenda rather than just the health and safety of the citizens of the state.

Unfortunately, what we as the citizens have learned is that the governor and the Secretary of Health have almost unlimited power when it comes to a public health crisis. There is no review by the state legislature on the governor’s powers and there is no way to slow down an abuse of power, if one were to occur (which many believe may be currently occurring).

I also just learned that the Secretary of Health is not an elected official. The secretary is appointed by the governor. Looking at the credentials of the current secretary, it appears he has all the qualifications to make him acceptable for the job. But as an appointee, that also means that undo pressure could be applied.

I am not saying the Secretary of Health has an agenda, but the governor does have one. With literally very few checks and balances of power on the governor in these types of situations, it certainly bears additional scrutiny.

Could the secretary have an agenda? It’s possible. Or maybe not. But, having someone with so much power, along with the governor and not be an elected official, that bears a closer look too.

Do you know how your government is set up?

Free?

Posted on May 21, 2020 by backuphill

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“…O’re the land of the free and home of the brave.”

That’s the last line of the national anthem. You know, “The Star-Spangled Banner.” The one that apparently some find offensive, but that’s a topic for another day.

Anyway, I think we have seen rather clearly that “home of the brave” is not really the country we live in any longer. That is likely a subjective statement. I mean, there are lots of brave people out there still, but there seems to be far more people who would rather not rise to a challenge and would rather make things easy and comfortable.

With that ease, comes the previous line.

“Land of the free.”

That line refers to the rights and freedoms we have as citizens of the United States. Freedom from government control and abuse. That is something to be celebrated and protected.

BUT, the land of the free apparently has taken on a different meaning to an astoundingly large group of people (yes, Dems, I am looking at you…).

Now, it seems, land of the free means giving stuff away to those who don’t deserve it. Moreover, giving it away to people who aren’t even citizens of the country. We have already seen in California that the governor & legislature wants to give away $75 million in stimulus money to illegal immigrants in the state, not to mention health services and education and other benefits they already have been giving away. Lawsuits over this giveaway are in the process, but in the meantime those who don’t deserve taxpayer money are getting it for free.

Washington now wants to follow the same path, only Seattle wants $100 million. Not only does the state turn a blind eye to those who are here illegally, but now it wants to reward them too.

It makes no sense.

There are lots of things that I am willing to pay taxes for, even with the fact that there is a huge amount of waste and inefficiency in government. But what I am not willing to do is to pay taxes to give to people who aren’t supposed to be here in the first place. I wouldn’t go to another country and expect that I get a handout, regardless of whether I am working or not. I’ll earn my money, thanks. I certainly wouldn’t expect to get money after breaking the law to get there and stay there. How does that make sense?

Government should be small and responsive. When it isn’t, there is a problem. There’s been a problem here for a long time and the prospects for it getting worse are frightening.

The city

Posted on May 20, 2020 by backuphill

The ditch doesn’t look like this…Photo by Inge Wallumrød on Pexels.com

Just had a guy from the city stop by.

I called a month ago to see if I could get someone to come out and take a look at the ditch that runs in front of the house. Of course, the lockdown thing was keeping them from being able to come out and take a look so I figured I would disappear to someone’s “Yeah, we may or may not get to it” file.

The ditch out front of the house is a pain in the rear. Ultimately, since it is in the city’s right of way, I would like to have them put a pipe in it and then make it disappear so the front of the yard doesn’t have that stupid thing. The last guy that lived here tried to fill it himself and the city made him dig it back up because he didn’t do it correctly. As such, it has needed maintenance ever since.

So, the guy comes out. Asks some questions. Wants to know what I would like to have happen. He becomes non-committal about the options they have and then suggests maybe I could clean it out. I politely informed him that I am not going to do the work of the city if it is in their right of way. He said he would talk to some people and get back to me.

So, now I suppose I am officially in the “Yeah, we may or may not get to it” file.

What’s irritating is that they suggested, the first time I called the city, that I do it myself and pay for the supplies and the engineering company, with permits, of course, to fill in the ditch with pipe. Yeah, not gonna happen. What might happen is that I do pay for the supplies and just do it myself in the middle of the night…but then, of course, someone would find out and then I probably would end up either having to dig it out or pay the fees (because governments are always quick to make sure they get their fees) for them to dig it out and do it correctly…not gonna happen.

So, it will just sit there and be useless and unsightly.

Man, I hate that ditch.

A matter of trust

Posted on May 18, 2020 by backuphill

lighted matchstick on brown wooden surface

Photo by Sebastian Sørensen on Pexels.com

Last week I said there was a red line that seemed to get farther and farther away because the government seemed to have ulterior motives. I wrote that in the morning on Friday. Friday evening, a report cam out that kinda confirms the suspicions of many who abided by the initial red line and then saw it move.

The governor of Washington, Jay Inslee, keeps moving the red line and the state’s residents are paying the price. Healthy residents are confined to their homes “Stay Home, Stay Healthy), businesses are struggling, cities are becoming insolvent, hospitals (the supposed “front lines”) are furloughing or laying people off. There has been clear evidence of a power grab and then we hear this…

In an interview with Bernie Sanders, Inslee said (starting @ 48:00), “this has always been an economic opportunity … we should not be intimidated by people who say you should not use this COVID crisis to peddle a solution to climate change … we can’t use COVID as an excuse for inaction on climate change … they’re both so similar … based on an understanding of science.” (here is the specific part in a shorter clip)

Um, did you catch that? So, this pandemic is a great opportunity to tear down the economy and start back with green solutions? Yeah, no. Not the time or the place. People are suffering and the pandering to socialist causes isn’t the time to push an agenda either.

Fraud is rampant in unemployment claims when the people could actually be working and providing for their families. There wouldn’t even be a need for unemployment claims if this jackwagon would let people make decisions for themselves instead of using the government to abuse the rights of its citizens.

It’s an issue of trust, and quite frankly no one trusts him. No one trusts that what has been done has been done for the right reasons.

How far are you willing to let them go? You have common sense (assumptions being made here) and you can see how this has gone. Can you take a guess about where it will continue to go? Do you blindly go “like sheep to the slaughter” because you gave “up essential liberty to purchase temporary safety”?

Red line

Posted on May 15, 2020 by backuphill

Photo by Johannes Plenio on Pexels.com

Remember the “red line”?

You know, the one about Syria. Where a former President said that if the government of that country took certain actions then that would cross a red line and then action against said government would be taken in a direct and forceful manner? I know you can recall it. Remember how the red line kept moving? How conditions were met, but the red line just kept getting farther away and the requirements kept changing?

Let me submit for your consideration another red line instance.

A red line that keeps moving but for different reasons. This time, it can be seen at some national department levels, but mostly at the state & county & even the city level with certain government officials and this whole pandemic thing.

Remember how we were told the pandemic was coming and there was a red line that couldn’t be crossed or we would be in big trouble?

You know, “flatten the curve” and all that jazz? Let’s “stay home, stay safe” so we can keep our hospitals from being overrun with the sick? So there wasn’t a major lack of supplies and all?

Well, it seems the curve has been flattened and we never actually got to the red line, but for some reason the red line keeps getting pushed farther and farther out.

The first message was, “We need to do this to keep people safe and to keep the healthcare system from being overwhelmed.” Red line 1.

Okay. This is unknown, and temporary, so sure why not? We can do this so we can get more info.

Then the message was, “OK, this seems to be working, so let’s do it for just a little bit longer so testing can catch up.” Red line 2.

Seems reasonable, but this might actually not be needed. I am a reasonable adult and can make smart choices and be cautious without being told what I can’t and can’t do.

Now the message is, “We’re going to extend the ‘stay home, stay safe’ order because it worked and there isn’t a vaccine or a cure yet and we think everyone should continue to be isolated while we pick the winners and losers in the economy. Schools, businesses, and public areas may or may not open based on a plan that will take weeks, if not months, maybe years, to implement. Please heed the warnings of forecasts that are about as good as weather reports and trust us that we’re doing this because we know best.”

Red line 3.

So, we are being forced to obey the will of the government, by force in some cases, Constitution and rights be damned. Um, is the government working FOR us or AGAINST us here?

I get the red line. The first one was necessary. The second, questionable. But the third? Not so much.

There are few things more irritating than changing expectations or goals that can’t be met because the goal line keeps changing.

As citizens, I think it is time to step up and let the government know, again, who draws the lines and what we are willing and not willing to do, and when we are willing to do it.

Refi

Posted on May 12, 2020 by backuphill

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I’ll tell you what, in a world where everything seemingly has to be done online right now, banks aren’t really trying to make the Refi process any easier.

When a bank contacts you about the possibility of lowering the interest rate on your mortgage it should be a breeze. They have all the info they need based on the current loan and short of a few updated documents for verification, it should be a seamless and painless process.

Nope.

At least not with Chase. Maybe others have been better.

Their website doesn’t work like it should. They are communicating, or at least trying to communicate with me, through two different portals instead of one. I can only upload documents in one of those portals, but have another portal to “e-sign” stuff in. Makes no sense.

Then the mortgage advisor assigned to me doesn’t communicate with me until nearly the end of each day so it takes another 24 hours to get anything done. This all could have been done last week, but they can’t print (or download) the documents already signed on their website, and they keep asking for things we have already done.

Irritating I tell ya! I stayed with them because it should be relatively easy if you’re already their customer. Nope. Not so much.

Frustration.

Money tree?

Posted on May 11, 2020 by backuphill

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Apparently the Democrats have a money tree they aren’t telling people about. Actually, it must be more than one, because there is no explanation of how this government give-away can be paid for, let alone sustainable.

What I can’t figure out is where they think the money for this is going to come from. Higher taxes? Who can pay those since many business are shut down? Oh, and since business are shut down, they’re laying off or furloughed their workers. And those workers don’t have money to spend at the businesses that remain open. The business that remain open? Well, they reduced hours and laid people off.

You see how this works, right? The cycle the economy follows is self-generating. In order for it to work, all parts have to be working efficiently and effectively. There is no part of an economy that doesn’t rely on another part of itself to work, removing parts keeps it from working.

Guaranteed Minimum Income. Universal Basic Income.

Two bad ideas and perhaps this is all about a dress rehearsal for those. Sounds great on paper but doesn’t work in reality or practicality. It’s been tried and nearly always/completely leads to disaster. But the socialists in the country are gonna keep on pushing it because you know, the mirage of utopia is just one the other side…

Perhaps its an attempt to buy votes for the upcoming election in November.

“Look what we tried to do (or did) for you! But those big bad, typically small government and more fiscally responsible Republicans kept us from giving you free money that we don’t have and can’t afford. Aren’t they mean? They’re keeping you on the bottom on purpose by not giving you the opportunity to receive free money instead of earning it. “

If a politician is telling you that you can get something for nothing, you better look real hard and ask a lot of questions. It ain’t true, no matter what they tell you! There is always a cost, and it definitely won’t be what you think it is and it won’t be the first thing you find. Dig deeper.

Hype

Posted on May 8, 2020 by backuphill

It’s getting rather old, isn’t it?.

Conflicting messages about what we should be afraid of…Covid-19, murder hornets, SARS, the flu, cancer, pollution, eggs, aliens, Russians and collusion…you name it and it’s likely been on the list at some point.

Sure, some are dangerous and some are likely even deadly. But to the extent that they would like us to believe? Not even remotely.

There have been lots of jokes on social media about the next big threat coming this summer, as in the Biblical plagues on the Egyptians or a really bad game of Jumanji.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t take much scrutiny to figure out there is something fishy going on. Rules apply to some, but not to others. Justice moves swiftly when those in power want it to move swiftly.

24 hour news cycles and billions of clicks later, there are definitely winners and losers are in this whole thing.

Some experts are more powerful than other experts. How does that happen? Whom is deciding who or what should be listened to and who we shouldn’t listen to?

There are a lot of questions these days and we, as the public, should be asking hard questions and then asking even harder questions. Maybe hunkering down and hiding in fear was the best answer, but maybe it really wasn’t.

What I do know is that I am tired of the hype.

**I am sure you have seen the viral video posted at the top. That about sums up all the hype. Credit to the owner.**

Slaves

Posted on April 29, 2020 by backuphill

Photo by Suzy Hazelwood on Pexels.com

We’re all slaves.

Slaves to something. Whether it be an addiction or ideology or habit or whatever, there is something that controls us to some degree. It is inevitable.

Guaranteed you’re a slave to money. So am I.

We all need it to one degree or another. Some of us need it less and some of us need it more but, any way you look at it, we all still need it. We don’t live in a hunter-gatherer society any longer so we obviously live beyond just a subsistence level (those were simpler days, weren’t they?).

So, I was thinking about the fact that we are all slaves today.

Through this whole pandemic thing, I have had to keep asking myself about whom I am willing to be a slave to. I need money, that isn’t an option. Because of that, I have really been questioning which is more important, my job or the government? Essentially, I am asking which am I willing to be a slave to.

Would I rather be a slave to big business or to big government?

Some might argue that they are pretty similar, really, but let’s not get into the weeds of the debate here. Would I rather be at the mercy of big business where, for the most part, there is innovation and some freedom to decide where I want to work OR would I rather be at the mercy of an all powerful government where I have to rely on them for most everything and not question them and there is little to no innovation or freedom of choice?

Business or government? Freedom or oppression?

Now, I am a historian and I know the history. I know big business can be a lot like a government in my ways.

There is always going to be abuse, but at least with business there is always the chance for the little guy to break away and try to make it on his own. Start something new if he doesn’t like the big business or has an idea that could possibly innovate an industry.

But with a government, in most cases, I can’t just pick up and move to a different government if I don’t like it (like I can with a job). Know what I mean? In most cases I am going to be subject to the current government and there isn’t a way for me to break away and say, “Hey, I have a better idea, let’s do it this way!” Thus going about establishing a new government I see fit for me and those who agree with me.

That option doesn’t exist under a government like it does with a business.

Anyway, all this to say, have we let the government(s) go too far with this whole lockdown thing? Which response, meaning what level of government, was appropriate – federal, state, county, city? Whom has abused their powers? The powers WE gave them and that WE may possibly need to fight back to get again?

I feel like I am rambling now. I was hoping to keep this as a short, salient point, but I fear the more I explain it the more confusing it gets.

So, who or what are you willing to be a slave to?