I Agree With Donald Trump

OK, so Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said that he would stop Muslims from entering the United States -- that includes Muslim students, tourists, refugees, and of course potential terrorist.

Wait, did I say he wants to keep out potential terrorists? Yes, he does. Imagine that. That is quite a change in policy over the present policy of allowing anyone in -- even if they hate us.

While Trump's call for a complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States has drawn condemnation from Muslim groups, Democrats, and even Trump's Republican rivals, is anyone really surprised that they would not agree with Trump. 

Friends, Muslim groups such as and associated with the likes of CAIR, the Muslim Brotherhood, and the Nation of Islam want to kill Americans. Of course they don't want the door secured and the bad guys kept out. 

And as for so-called Republicans like Speaker of the House Paul Ryan who came out to say that Trump does not reflect the values of Republican Party, Paul Ryan does not reflect the values Republican Party.

When did it happen that stupid and reckless abandonment of security for our nation became values of the Republican Party? When did it take place that Republicans stopped caring about the safety of the American people just to appease United Nation refugee mandates and an administration that doesn't give a shit about our security? 

When is it that the Republican Party became the Democrats and want to be Politically Correct instead of sane and prudent? Since when has the Republican Party been hijacked by politicians who put their own wants and desires, themselves, ahead of America? 

This is not about some passage of a poem on the Statue of Liberty, or the Democrat idea that there should be no borders. This is about the security of our nation and the protection of our people. Yes, this is about the reason that our government was created in the first place. This is about providing for the common defense of the United States.

And guess what, limiting access is as old a basic principle of security as one can possible find. 

Security is the degree of resistance to, or protection from, harm. It applies to any vulnerable and valuable asset, such as a person or many people, homes, businesses, organizations, groups, events, gatherings, towns, cities, small communities and big, state and nation.

There are a number of security measure we take every day. We limit access to our bank accounts, our computers, our cars, homes, businesses and so on. When I was a young Marine, one of my first duties was to be assigned to the security of Nuclear Weapons.

As with most types of physical security, we are talking about security measures designed to deny unauthorized access to facilities, equipment and resources, and to protect personnel and property from damage or harm. In the case of store security, the primary threat is theft. In the case of Nuclear Security, the primary threats were espionage and sabotage. 

The primary threat involved with allowing un-screened or inept screening to take place is terrorist  attacks that result in the deaths of Americans. Yes, Americans which may include your family members. 

So, why do I support Donald Trump's call for a temporary halt to Muslims seeking to enter the United States -- including Muslim students, tourists, refugees, and of course potential terrorist?

It is simple, I treasure your life and the life of members of your family. I was a Security Consultant for years, and I can tell you that physical security involves the use of multiple layers of interdependent systems -- which include surveillance systems, security guards and the incorporation of patrol procedures, barricades, protective barriers, locks, and of course access control. Yes, access control.

Good security is about controlling access to those you want to keep safe. The first rule is to keep the bad guys out. How you do that means limiting who can come in. Screening protocols will establish who you allow in and who you try to keep out. 

This is not brain surgery. This is basic security, basic self protection when there are bad guys who want in to harm you and yours. 

Whether all of the Republicans who just chastised Trump over this understand it or not, this is not about values of "who we are" but about losing American lives to people extremely determined to kill Americans. 

Pertaining to Donald Trump's comments, comments that I believe reflect the feelings of a great number of Americans, Jeb Bush tweeting that Trump "is unhinged". Carly Fiorina called the proposal an "overreaction [as] dangerous as President Obama's under-reaction." I just hope these two have the guts to tell that to the families of the victims of the next Muslim terrorist attack which could have been prevented if we halted Muslim entry until we have a better screening system. But believe me when I say, as with Paul Ryan, they won't.

Trump’s proposal has come five days after Muslim terrorists killed 14 people and injured 21 at a Christmas office party in San Bernardino, California, all while President Obama is determined to relocate tens of thousands of Syrian refugees in the United States. 

The head of the FBI stated that there is no question that Syrian refugees CANNOT be effectively screened. Because of what the head of the FBI says, I feel that Donald Trump has bravely stepped forward to take on the task of the first duties of president.

Trumps's proposal: "Until we are able to determine and understand this problem and the dangerous threat it poses, our country cannot be the victims of horrendous attacks by people that believe only in Jihad, and have no sense of reason or respect for human life."

Yes, the first duty of a president is not to worry about appeasing the United Nations or bowing to Muslims who want us dead. It is to protect us, our homeland, our nation, America.

It's not surprising that Muslim leaders expressed outrage at the idea. And really, who is really surprised when Hillary Clinton called the proposal "reprehensible, prejudiced and divisive."

And really, who is surprised that the openly avowed Socialist, a Democrat who has constantly demonstrated his hatred for the United States, Bernie Sanders said "Trump and others want us to hate all Muslims." 

And by the way, for you people out who agree with Hillary and Bernie, those of you who believe in Open Borders -- why don't you take the locks off the doors of your homes? Why don't you make the place where you live like the America you want?

Like the Democrats who are always bad mouthing the Police yet need them, or want guns banned yet called to borrow one during the Rodney King riots in Los Angeles, you should practice what they preach and leave the doors to your home open to all. Ask yourself if you are really OK with letting in the known and the unknown?

Would you open your doors and allow all to access your home? I wouldn't. Friends and family can get in if they want and need to, and no one else has the need without my permission.

Would you not concern yourself with who comes into your home? I am very concerned with who comes in my home. Yes, I care if their intentions are friendly or not.

Security is a big deal to me and maybe that's way I see this as being a big deal. That's the reason that I think Donald Trump is right. The people he is talking about keeping out, until we can truly determine their background and intentions, are among the Syrian refugees that Obama wants to bring here.

Trump is right because experts have already determined that ISIS members and sympathizers are among them. That is a fact not up for debate. And frankly, that makes Trump's proposal a good start to control access and safeguard the American people.

And frankly friends, why should we allow citizens to put all of us at risk because of some political agenda? Besides, since Trump is talking about a halt until a better system is in place, I'd really like to know why it's so important to politicians that the American government to act in hast?

Why is it so important that we allow would-be terrorists to enter America right now? What is wrong with getting a better system in place before moving forward?

We spend billions of taxpayer dollars on all sorts of fancy military hardware to protect us. We also spend billions of taxpayer dollars on government waste such as the scam called "Climate Control."

How about we funnel some of those funds to create protocols and a screening system that can keep us safe today by limiting access as to who comes in and who doesn't? America is our home, why are we not securing it in the same why that we do the homes we live in? We should.

UPDATE: I have received a lot of email over this telling me that I'm talking about taking away people's rights. First, I've read the Constitution a number of times and cannot find where we cannot keep out FOREIGNERS who are a threat. Second, no matter what Democrats and Liberals and RINOs say, FOREIGNERS do not have the rights of American CITIZENS. That is a fact, so keeping out FOREIGNERS because they pose a possible threat to our nation is well within the law.

And yes, that's just the way I see it.
Tom Correa

Islamic Group C.A.I.R Is A Sham

By Terry McGahey
Associate Writer/Historian

After the cowardly terrorist attack that took place in San Bernardino, California. The Council on American-Islamic Relations made their grandstand appearance on the news talking about how they feel badly for the victims. This act was done for no other reason than damage control, period!

The Islamic group CAIR was created by the Muslim Brotherhood which, as we all know, is a radical Islamic organization.

This group receives financial support from several foreign powers, some of these are the same powers which supported Osama Bin Laden, Al-Qaeda, and Hamas as well.

This group has not only received donations from convicted terrorists, but has also praised terrorists and has stated that suicide bombers are acting on behalf of Islam.

CAIR board members have also called for the overthrow of the United States Government and to impose Sharia law, which in reality means murder, the killing of anyone who criticizes Islam on the internet or anywhere else.

This is nothing but a Muslim Brotherhood organization which lies to the American people about their so called moderate Muslim approach. Even in the Koran, it is permissible for Muslims to lie to the infidels, or non believers if you will, to promote their agenda.

If CAIR truly was a moderate Islamic organization, if there really is such a thing, then why is it that they as well as others are not standing up in public in mass against radical Islam? Maybe it's because the so-called "moderates" are afraid of their own Islamic brothers, or is it because there is no such thing as "moderate" Muslims?

The so-called "moderate" Muslims read from the same Koran that the radicals do, and believe in the same words written within the Koran or they wouldn't be true Muslims.

As I have said before, there are over 100 passages within the Koran that promotes the killing of infidels which they consider the non believers. They call Muhammad their prophet.

Well, Warren Jeffs who led the child raping polygamist cult in Arizona City was also called a prophet. Jim Jones who planned the mass murder of his cult followers was also called a prophet by his dominion. Over these past many years, religious cults have called their leaders prophets and followed them with blind eyes, and even some like sheep to the slaughter house.

What amazes me about this so-called president of ours, who claims to be a Christian, is why he objects to calling attacks such as the Boston Marathon, Fort Hood killings, or now the massacre in San Bernardino, attacka by Islamic terrorists. Obama would rather call this work place violence and has tried to play that game even with this latest horrific event.

Even before the bodies of our citizens were cold, he announced the need for more gun control. There is no amount of gun control laws that would have stopped this terrorist action, nor will there be any gun control laws in the future that will stop an Islamic terrorist attack. The only thing more gun laws will do is to make it harder for the honest citizen to defend themselves.

Obama himself was raised as a Muslim up until the age of eleven years old that we know of, which are the formative years in a child's life, and his actions prove time and time again that if he truly is not a Muslim by belief, he leans more toward the Muslims than Christians.

My opinion, yes he is a Muslim and his actions, or should I say inaction, have proven this to me over the years. There is nothing about the Muslim belief system that works within our Constitution or the American way of life, not even a little bit.

Don't take my word for it, do some research yourself. If you do you will find that there is no room for Islamic beliefs within our governments structure. This being of fact, why has Obama appointed Muslims into his cabinet and why are a few of them associated with the Muslim Brotherhood?

As I close this article, I only want to leave you with this old saying. When it comes to CAIR and our so called president, "if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it's a damn duck!"

Do citizens (not police officers) with guns ever stop mass shootings?

By Eugene Volokh 

Backers of laws that let pretty much all law-abiding people carry concealed guns in public places often argue that these laws will sometimes enable people to stop mass shootings. 

Opponents occasionally ask: If that’s so, what examples can one give of civilians armed with guns stopping such shootings? 

Sometimes, I hear people asking if even one such example can be found, or saying that they haven’t heard of even one such example.

A while back I posted about a few examples, but since then there have been some more, so I thought I’d note them. Naturally, such examples will be rare. Even in states which allow concealed carry, there often aren’t people near a shooting who have a gun on them at the time. 

Many mass shootings happen in supposedly “gun-free” zones (such as schools, universities or private property posted with a no-guns sign), in which gun carrying isn’t allowed. 

And there is no central database of such examples, many of which don’t hit the national media, especially if a gunman is stopped before he shoots many victims. Moreover, at least some examples are ambiguous, because it might be unclear — as you’ll see below — whether the shooter had been planning to kill more people when he was stopped.

Still, for whatever they are worth, here is a list of some such incidents (which deliberately excludes killings stopped by people who were off-duty police officers, or police officers from other jurisdictions, at the time of a shooting, as well as some other cases which struck me as borderline):

1. In Chicago earlier this year, an Uber driver with a concealed-carry permit “shot and wounded a gunman [Everardo Custodio] who opened fire on a crowd of people.”

2. In a Philadelphia barber shop earlier this year, Warren Edwards “opened fire on customers and barbers” after an argument. 

Another man with a concealed-carry permit then shot the shooter; of course it’s impossible to tell whether the shooter would have kept killing if he hadn’t been stopped, but a police captain was quoted as saying that, “I guess he [the man who shot the shooter] saved a lot of people in there.”

3. In a hospital near Philadelphia, in 2014, Richard Plotts shot and killed the psychiatric caseworker with whom he was meeting, and shot and wounded his psychiatrist, Lee Silverman. Silverman shot back, and took down Plotts. 

While again it’s not certain whether Plotts would have killed other people, Delaware County D.A. Jack Whelan stated that, “If the doctor did not have a firearm, (and) the doctor did not utilize the firearm, he’d be dead today, and I believe that other people in that facility would also be dead”.

Yeadon Police Chief Donald Molineux similar said that he “believe[d] the doctor saved lives.” 

Plotts was still carrying 39 unspent rounds when he was arrested. 

4. In Plymouth, Pa., in 2012, William Allabaugh killed one man and wounded another following an argument over Allabaugh being ejected from a bar. 

Allabaugh then approached a bar manager and Mark Ktytor and reportedly pointed his gun at them; Ktytor, who had a concealed-carry license, then shot Allabaugh. 

“The video footage and the evidence reveals that Mr. Allabaugh had turned around and was reapproaching the bar. Mr. [Ktytor] then acted, taking him down. We believe that it could have been much worse that night,” Luzerne County A.D.A. Jarrett Ferentino said.

5. Near Spartanburg, S.C., in 2012, Jesse Gates went to his church armed with a shotgun and kicked in a door. 

But Aaron Guyton, who had a concealed-carry license, drew his gun and pointed it at Gates, and other parishioners then disarmed Gates. 

Note that in this instance, unlike the others, it’s possible that the criminal wasn’t planning on killing anyone, but just brought the shotgun to church and kicked in the door to draw attention to himself or vent his frustration.

6. In Atlanta in 2009, Calvin Lavant and Jamal Hill broke into an apartment during a party and forced everyone to the floor. 

After they gathered various valuables, and separated the men and the women, and Lavant said to Hill, “we are about to have sex with these girls, then we are going to kill them all,” and began “discussing condoms and the number of bullets in their guns.” 

At that point, Sean Barner, a Marine who was attending Georgia State as part of the Marine Enlisted Commissioning Education Program, managed to get to the book bag he brought to the party; took out his gun; shot and scared away Hill; went into the neighboring room, where Lavant was about to rape one of the women; was shot at by Lavant, and shot back and hit Lavant, who then ran off and later died of his injuries. 

One of the women was shot and wounded in the shootout, but given the circumstances described in the sources I linked to, it seemed very likely that Lavant and Hill would have killed (as well as raped) some or all of the partygoers had they not been stopped. 

This incident of course involves a member of the military, not a civilian, so some may discount it on those grounds. But Barner was acting as a civilian, and carrying a gun as a civilian (he had a concealed carry license); indeed, if he had been on a military base, he would generally not have been allowed to carry a gun except when on security duty.

7. In Winnemucca, Nev., in 2008, Ernesto Villagomez killed two people and wounded two others in a bar filled with 300 people. 

He was then shot and killed by a patron who was carrying a gun (and had a concealed-carry license). 

It’s not clear whether Villagomez would have killed more people; the killings were apparently the result of a family feud, and I could see no information on whether Villagomez had more names on his list, nor could one tell whether he would have killed more people in trying to evade capture.

8. In Colorado Springs, Colo., in 2007, Matthew Murray killed four people at a church. 

He was then shot several times by Jeanne Assam, a church member, volunteer security guard and former police officer (she had been dismissed by a police department 10 years before, and to my knowledge hadn’t worked as a police officer since). 

Murray, knocked down and badly wounded, killed himself; it is again not clear whether he would have killed more people had he not been wounded, but my guess is that he would have. 

[UPDATE: he apparently went to the church with more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition].

9. In Edinboro, Pa., in 1998, 14-year-old Andrew Wurst shot and killed a teacher at a school dance, and shot and injured several other students. 

He had just left the dance hall, carrying his gun — possibly to attack more people, though the stories that I’ve seen are unclear — when he was confronted by the dance hall owner James Strand, who lived next door and kept a shotgun at home. 

It’s not clear whether Wurst was planning to kill others, would have gotten into a gun battle with the police, or would have otherwise killed more people had Strand not stopped him.

10. In Pearl, Miss., in 1997, 16-year-old Luke Woodham stabbed and bludgeoned to death his mother at home, then killed two students and injured seven at his high school. 

As he was leaving the school, he was stopped by Assistant Principal Joel Myrick, who had gone out to get a handgun from his car. 

I have seen sources that state that Woodham was on the way to Pearl Junior High School to continue shooting, though I couldn’t find any contemporaneous news articles that so state. 

[UPDATE: For whatever it’s worth, Heidi Kinchen of The Advocate (Baton Rouge) notes that Myrick was in the Army reserves and in the National Guard, though he was obviously not on duty at the time of the shooting.]

Of course there’s much we don’t know about civilians and mass shootings: In what fraction of mass shootings would such interventions happen, if gun possession were allowed in the places where the shootings happen? In what fraction would interventions prevent more killings and injuries, as opposed to capturing or killing the murderer after he’s already done? In what fraction would interventions lead to more injuries to bystanders?

Finally, always keep in mind that mass shootings in public places should not be the main focus in the gun debate, whether for gun control or gun decontrol: They on average account for much less than 1 percent of the U.S. homicide rate and are unusually hard to stop through gun control laws (since the killer is bent on committing a publicly visible murder and is thus unlikely to be much deterred by gun control law, or by the prospect of encountering an armed bystander). Still, people had asked for examples of some shootings in which a civilian armed with a gun intervened and brought down the shooter, so here is what I found.

Some of these incidents are drawn from a list on the Crime Prevention Research Center site, though I have independently read the media reports to which I linked (as well as some other media reports on the incidents, for background).

UPDATE: I originally called this post, “Do civilians with guns ever stop mass shootings?,” using “civilians” to set aside mass shootings stopped by on- or off-duty police officers. But after learning that Myrick (#10) was a National Guard member, and that Barner (#6) was a Marine, I changed that to “citizens (not police officers).” 

I think including the military members is still helpful, because they were acting as civilians, and were not on duty, on base, or otherwise different from other citizens (though of course they had weapons training and the experience of military discipline, something that many millions of former military members also have). 

But I note their military membership above, so people who want to set them aside and focus on the other eight examples can do so.

Editor's Note:

The above article from October 3rd, 2015 was sent to me right after the recent San Bernardino Massacre, the most recent Muslim terrorist attack. It makes the great point as to how armed citizens, yes Americans with guns, could have stopped the Muslim terrorist attack.

Eugene Volokh is a blogger and teacher. His blog The Volokh Conspiracy is very good. And yes, he teaches free speech law, religious freedom law, church-state relations law, a First Amendment Amicus Brief Clinic, and tort law, at UCLA School of Law, where he has also often taught copyright law, criminal law, and a seminar on firearms regulation policy.

His article addresses the issue of citizens with guns stopping what can be mass murder. I hope you share this with others in an effort to combat the myth that guns are the problem -- when in fact guns may have very well prevented what took place in San Bernardino, California.

Just knowing that there would have been the possibility of armed resistance may have been enough to stop a terrorist attack. After all, the target was chosen because of its lack of protection -- as most "soft targets" are.

And yes, that's just how I see it.
Tom Correa
Editor, American Cowboy Chronicles

We went to the Price Is Right

So OK, I made it to Hollywood! Yes, as funny as that sounds, it's true!

So what am I talking about? Well, my mom turned 81 years old  on November 6th. When asked what she wanted for her 81st birthday, she replied, "To be on the Price Is Right!"

Yes, my mom is one of the millions of people out there who turn on their televisions to watch the Price Is Right game show. And yes, since mom requested what she had, I have found a great number of people who watch that show religiously. Some watch it daily, others tape it for later, and a few have said that they want to be on it as well. For me, being real honest, I'd never watched the whole show. So frankly, I really didn't know much about it.

But with mom's request in mind, my wife Deanna and I got on-line to research what it would take to go to Hollywood and be on the Price Is Right. We found their website, and soon picked a date and time and had tickets to stand in line with a couple of hundred other people to get in.

Of course, first in line has a better chance of getting in to be part of the audience. The four of us were numbers 008, 009, 010, and 011. So as you can see, we were pretty much the first in line.

We arranged to be there on November 30th, at the 12 Noon taping. We were also given directions, and we found hotel rooms. We did all of this within an hour or so of us sitting at a computer. Yes, as remarkable as that is, it was all just that quick all on line.

To say that my mom was excited about going would have been an understatement. She told all of her friends who she plays cards and bunco with. And yes, she certainly told all of her Red Hat cronies the news. In fact, I don't know anyone in the small town of Ione who didn't know she was going to be on the Price Is Right.

On Thanksgiving, after having dinner, while I grabbed a seat in a recliner to slip into a turkey-coma, Deanna and mom set out to make shirts that would hopefully catch the attention of the folks who pick people to go up on-stage. For me, I have to admit that it was certainly a lot of fun just watching them acting like kids as they wrote catchy phrases on their shirts -- all in glitter of course!

As for me, since it is the Christmas Season, I figured that I'd simply grab my newest 4XL red shirt and wear it. Since I was told that television cameras make people look 10 pounds heavier than they are, I figured I'd certainly look as big as a house on TV.

At first, I figured we'd drive the 7 hours or so south to Los Angeles a day ahead of time -- but then it became very evident that mom wanted to go sight seeing even if it meant just the sights right there in Hollywood. Thankfully, my wife Deanna is game and willing to go on adventures now and again.

So while I figured that Deanna and I would take my mom to Hollywood alone, I was shocked when my older brother said that he wanted to go as well. While he's not one for traveling, come to find out that he watches the show pretty regularly as well.

Deanna and I asked and were very happy that our great friends Kevin and Bret Haight agreed to feed and care for our horses and critters while we were gone. They are such a great young couple. And yes, their son Rider, age 10, and daughter Paisley, age 5, are wonderful kids. While I'm thankful that Kevin sees me as a good friend, Bret calls me "dad," and their kids treat my wife and I as their adopted grandparents. So yes, we are all pretty close. And frankly, it's great.

Knowing that our place was in good hands, and knowing that my father-in-law was coming up to use my gun range and then take our dog Holly home with him for the week was a great relief, it certainly helps lessen worry about what's going on at home while you're away.

So with everything set in place, at about 10:30 on Saturday morning November 28th, my wife and I left home to pick up my brother and mom to head south for Los Angeles about 400 miles away.

Google Maps determined that our trip would take 7 hours from our home. But with detouring to pick up my brother and mom, we lost an hour or so right at the start. And no, Google's timeline didn't account for Holiday Weekend traffic or construction delays. So all in all, I drove for almost 10 hours to get us to Hollywood.

We stayed at the Best Western Hotel on Highland Ave. And yes, it was very nice there. On Sunday morning we had breakfast at the hotel's coffee shop, and that's where I met my first actress while in Hollywood.

Our server was a very friendly gal by the name of Fany Rosen who had a very slight accent. Because I can usually pickup that sort of thing, I asked her where she was originally from? Come to find out she was from "Sweden," and she said that she was there to be an actress.

Fany is a very pretty gal who ended up telling us a lot about how the whole acting thing works. The want of being on camera. The acting workshops. The acting academies. The want of a line or two. The hope of being a guest on a show. The desire to be a recurring guest star on a series. The dream of getting a part in a movie. She said she had been in a film or two, and that was great to hear. She seemed to have the right attitude to stay the course. I really do hope she makes it.

Since mom wanted to check out Grauman's Chinese Theater and the historic Hollywood Walk of Fame on Hollywood Boulevard, we left the Best Western to check it out and almost immediately ran smack dab into traffic. We found that Hollywood Blvd and a few other streets were being closed because of the Hollywood Christmas Parade that night. Yes, closed streets means diverted traffic to already congested traffic. It was a mess!

Friends, it was one of those situations you find yourself in where there's nothing else to do but remain calm and keep cool. Yes, the traffic down there takes all the patience that you can muster.

And frankly, while I only lost my cool once and yelled at some jerk to get his head out of his ass, I mostly just kept shaking my head in disbelief that people actually live there. They have an abundance of jackasses behind the wheel down there. We almost got hit a few times. So yes, it's hard to believe that people live in that on a daily basis.

We were diverted down one street where there were over a dozen tow-trucks towing away parked cars. Soon it became evident that there was a fleet of tow-trucks out all doing the same thing to get ready for the parade that night.

About 4 pm, I decided that mom would be disappointed if we didn't check out the parade that she'd only seen on TV. So since it was supposed to start at 5 pm, I dropped of Deanna and mom. I left for a few minutes to take my brother back to the hotel.

When I returned, I found Deanna and mom. We then pushed mom's wheelchair down the sidewalk through the crowd block after block until we found a place to position ourselves to watch the parade.

Now I would have thought that those city people would be rude and pushy like the people in San Francisco. But frankly, they were the opposite. Unlike the city folks in San Francisco, all of the folks along the sidewalks of the parade route were very friendly. It was a great surprise!

Patiently, yes, we waited and watched the parade preparation until the show started. It didn't start until 6:30 pm. And all in all, it was worth it because mom certainly enjoyed seeing the celebrities from the different television Soap-operas. For me, I had never heard of any of them -- but then again I don't watch Soap-operas.

And yes, I really believe that it was worth it for my wife and I since we both enjoyed the marching bands, the huge parade balloons all being held down by people on the ends of ropes, and the movie cars from films such as Batman, the Green Hornet, Transformers, Back To The Future, and more.

I went over to the Hooters Restaurant on Hollywood Blvd to buy a few bottled waters. It was there that I met two gals who were actresses, one singer, and one gal who was a model. Daisy, the Hooters gal who was working the register, said she was from Los Angeles and didn't have any desire to be an actress or a model. I found that sort of incredible considering she was the one person there with the nicest personality.

During the parade, of the people standing around us, many seemed to be from someplace other than California. Most of those folks were there to get into show business in one way or another. By then, I was getting used to meeting people who wanted to be actors and actresses.

While meeting would-be entertainers was not surprising after a while, what was surprising was the lack of education of many who wanted to pursue acting. You see, when I was in college, I remember a few folks there who studied drama and even Shakespeare. Most were good Liberal Arts students. Back then, it seems as though most of the drama students enjoyed life in college and "learning the craft of acting" as one fellow student told me once.

In Hollywood, I met a couple of would-be actresses who said they simply dropped out of High School and College to go to Hollywood to get into show business. One young man told me that he realized that he didn't need a College degree to be an actor. He said one day he suddenly realized that he didn't have be a doctor to play a doctor on television. He said, "They'll tell me what to say and all I have to do is repeat it."

Yes, he has a point. Actors and actresses don't have to be very educated to parrot lines. But frankly, I would think that as with any profession -- a well rounded education certainly wouldn't hurt.

After the parade, instead of dodging people on the sidewalk, Deanna and I pushed my mom onto the "red carpet" in front of Grauman's which was all covered up. So since the road was still blocked off, I pushed mom up the middle of Hollywood Blvd for the 4 or 5 blocks to where our car was parked. We had a good laugh about her making it onto the "red carpet."

The next morning, we arrived at CBS Studio and was allowed in at 10:30 and not a minute earlier. Once there, we sat around in line along with about 200 others until around 11:30. That was when we were issued "Contestant" numbers, and herded to benches for orientation.

The orientation included getting name tags, and legal forms to fill out and sign. The forms were all very legal to make sure that we stayed within their guidelines of not wearing any clothing to push products, or make political statements, or are vulgar or obscene. And of course, they wanted us to know what we could say and could not say on stage if called up. It was about 5 pages of legalize.

Then a little after Noon, a man who I believe was the Assistant Producer came up to each of us to "interview" us. He was the man who selected who would be chosen to go on-stage. He wanted to know what we did for a living.

I really believe that he wanted to see just how animated we were. Yes, it seemed to me that he was looking for the most animated dancing monkeys he could find. And yes, that's probably why none of us were picked. He probably saw that we looked a little tired from waiting around in lines.

Of course, there was a lot more waiting to do before actually going into the studio. You see, after the two question "interview", we were told to wait before being allowed in.

So yes, we all sat around until 3:30 pm before they finally let us into the studio to get the show on the road. Because my mom was in a wheelchair, they allowed us head-of-the-line-privileges for us to get to our seats. After we were inside the Bob Barker Studio and seated, they then let everyone else in. And yes, the place became a party!

The studio ceiling was hidden by what looked like a thousand studio spot and theatrical lights of every sort. There were at least 5 cameras on stage, including a boom camera. Among the monitors to watch what was being filmed, was also "APPLAUSE" signs. I found the whole production all very interesting to watch.

The taping of the show took about 3 hours. Yes, we left there at 6:45 pm. It was one long day. And this all leads to the question put to me by a friend yesterday when I was telling him about the trip.

"Was it worth it?" he asked.

Well, by the time it ended, mom was exhausted -- but she loved it. My brother, my wife and I all enjoyed the show a lot. And no, I'm not talking about the show that millions of viewers see on television. I'm talking about the production and the show that goes on during the production.

Though it took hours to get there, and hours to finally get in and be seated. it was a hoot! And yes, the reason for all of the laughter and fun was the show's star Drew Carey. Between he and announcer George Gray, during the taping, they entertained the audience non-stop!
Drew Carey asked people in the audience where they were from, what they did for a living, and who they were with. He'd relate his love of Disneyland and things in common with folks in the audience. His being personable was just great. He got personal about his time in college and other aspects of his life as well, and everyone in the audience ate it up -- me included.

Yes, since I was wearing Marine Corps ball cap, he asked me if I was in the Marine Corps? I said yes, and he went on to tell me that he was in the Marine Corps Reserves once upon a time. He was about to say something else when he was called away. I'm sort of curious what was it that he was about to say, but I'll never know.

Was it an effort to keep the audience raved-up and cheering? Sure, but it worked to the benefit of everyone there. From what I could see, everyone was having a great time. And frankly friends, I hadn't laughed so hard in a long long time -- especially at great clean jokes and puns!

If I had it in my power to produce a television show, it would be a show about what goes on behind that scenes at the Price Is Right.  It would show the crazies in the audience, it would have Drew Carey's outstanding sense of humor, and it would have his sidekick George Gray to back him up. It would be something to watch, and it would be a hit.

So was it all worth it? Was it worth it even though none of us were called to "Come On Down!"?

Well, yes it was. You see besides making mom's wish come true, the good time during the show and even the fun we had during the trip itself made everything worth while. Heck, even my curmudgeon older brother had a good time down there and on the way home. Imagine that! Miracles do happen!

As soon as it was over, we fought a little traffic but surprisingly not much. Once on the freeway north, I set the cruise control to 75 and pointed my Tahoe home. With no freeway traffic to speak of, we made it from Hollywood to just outside of Bakersfield in under 2 hours.

After stopping for dinner, we left and a little over 4 hours later dropped mom off at her home in the town of Ione a little after 2 am. My wife Deanna and I dropped my brother off at his home in Jackson at about 3. And as for Deanna and I, the end of a long day came when we got home at about 3:30.

During dinner, mom asked us if we would do it again? I though about it for a second and said "maybe with a few changes. But sure!"

On the way home, after dropping off my brother, Deanna told me that she didn't know about doing that run to Hollywood again anytime soon. I told her that after I thought about it a little more, I didn't think we would be making such a trip again. It made for a very long weekend, and none of us are getting any younger.

But then again, who knows what we might do or where we might head off to on a whim. As is life, we should just be ready for any impulse that one gets. That is, after all, part of what makes life exciting.

And yes, that's just the way I see it.
Tom Correa

Lobbyists, Non-Profits, & Special Interest Groups

By Terry McGahey
Associate Writer/Historian

Since my articles are purely of my own opinion, which I truly believe in, I want to give you my thoughts on the special interest groups which plague Washington, D.C.

I am only going to name a few, so for the most part I will only generalize. The reason being is because there are so many of them it would be darn near impossible to list them all.

Lobbyists, which represent special interest groups in Washington D.C. are one of the major sources of cancer that has been eating away at our freedoms. Example, do you truly believe that the government cares if you wear a seat belt in your vehicle, or if you wear a helmet while riding your motorcycle?

These laws were passed by the Federal and state governments because of the insurance lobby period. I am not arguing weather it's right or wrong, just pointing out that this was done through lobbyists.

Why do you think it is that the green movement has gained so much ground? Ecology group Lobbyists, that's why. Groups like Greenpeace and others may have started out for the right reasons, but once they reached a point of bringing in loads of money through donations and such they went off the deep end, and have taken things way to far.

Why? Money! Those groups are making millions of dollars while paying people in think tanks to figure out the next big cause to get behind which in general hurts corporations there by hurting the people as well.

The first thing they will tell you is that they are non profit, which is true, but the CEO and other officers of those groups are allowed to be paid and they are making money hand over fist. Do you think for one minute they are going to give that up? Not hardly!

That's why they have to keep coming up with more and more crap, they have to keep the money pouring in to feed the machine that bilks large amounts of cash from those who are foolish enough to donate to them in order to pay those obscenely high salaries at the top.

The Brady bunch, as I call them. The Brady Bill has brought in large amounts of cash over the years supporting anti gun legislation which initiated many other anti gun groups to spring up supporting this legislation in Washington D.C. Once again, the officers of those groups are being paid very large salaries which those people will do anything to keep lining their pockets with.

There are so many of these special interest groups and their paid lobbyists working for these well oiled machines, and of course this includes large corporations such as Google. It's no wonder we the American people don't stand much of a chance anymore, because donations and votes mean more to many of our politicians than the oath they promised to up hold or even more so, we the people.

These groups pour millions of dollars into our elected officials campaigns as well as promises of highly paid positions later in life, and again, votes that can be swayed one way or another by these crooks who control splinter groups such as ACORN and others.

In closing, I would like to ask one thing. When these crooks in D.C. get together and cut deals with each other about how one will support another's bill if the other will support his bill rather than do what's right, who do you think it will benefit? Not We The People that's for damn sure.

Veterans Attempting to Stop Terrorist at Border

A number of sources have reported on a group of Veterans who are armed and patrolling the Arizona border with Mexico -- all with the hopes of stopping any potential Middle Eastern terrorists from crossing the border.

With the appearance of Middle Eastern refugees trying to enter the United States through our Southern border, the reality of Muslim terrorists from the Middle East sneaking into our nation to preform acts of terrorism is real.

"There’s Palestinians, Afghans, Syrians trying to get in. We are trying to stop everything and anything from coming across," said Tim Foley, the field operations director of Arizona Border Recon.

While a few are not, most of the members of this citizen's group have served in some branch of our military. And yes, as with the Veterans, all are genuinely concerned about the possibility of terrorists coming into the United States through the U.S.-Mexico border.

This group is also aware of the image of armed Vets on patrol and want to make sure people know that they are concerned citizens and do not consider themselves a militia group.Yes, in the tradition of American citizens stepping forward to volunteer to assist and supplement law enforcement, that is what these Veterans are doing.

"We have the war on drugs and the war on terror and it seems that they are combining right here on the border," said Foley. "We’re not a militia, we’re not a three percent group, we do not advocate overthrowing the government . . . we are an extra set of eyes and ears for Border Patrol."

The Obama administration has cut Social Security benefits, Veterans benefits, military salaries, and  spending on the security of our border among other programs, all to increase the Billions of dollars that Obama has slated to help Syrian refugees. Because of these cuts by the Obama administration, we need more groups like these Vets to provide more eyes and ears on the border.

Yes, with more and more Border Patrol cuts, this Veterans group sets up multiple mile long perimeters at the border at random intervals hoping to stop or slow the flow of illegal crossings across the border.

In October it was reported that Border Patrol agents are seeing a surge in illegal crossings into the country along the southwest border. And yes, within the last few weeks more and more Syrian refugees are seen trying to sneak across.

While I don't read or trust the ultra-Liberal Washington Post, the Washington Times is a source that I trust. So yes, I believe it when they cite Chris Cabrera, an official with the National Border Patrol Council, the labor union for line agents, who testified to the Senate Homeland Security Committee,
"We’re talking about the rule of law in other countries; yet we’re not enforcing the rule of law in this country."

What is he talking about? It is about what happens after Illegals are caught. It's what happens when possible criminals and terrorists are set free to disappear in our population.

Mexican and Central American illegals caught at the border are given papers setting court dates, but are then released into the United States. Yes, and don't think this silly policy is lost on the criminals themselves.

The Times reports that illegal immigrants refer to the papers as "permisos" or passes -- all because that paperwork actually does grant them tentative permission to be in the country while awaiting their court hearing.

As crazy as that sounds, the Border Patrol knows that this policy is asinine. "In Border Patrol circles, that paperwork is now known as the 'notice to disappear' -- 80 percent, 90 percent of those folks will not show up for that hearing," Cabrera testified, the Times reports.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which oversees the Border Patrol, said in a statement to the Times that it is fully aware that illegal alien smugglers use the promise of "permisos" to entice people to immigrate.

While no one really puts any credibility in anything the White House has to say about the problem of illegals coming across the border, the reason being the Obama administration has turned a blind eye to any and all illegals coming across the border -- criminal or terrorist, Obama does not care who enters and disappears among the population.

In fact, Obama's Homeland Security Secretary has reported 331,000 illegal immigrants were caught at the border from Oct. 1, 2014, through Sept. 30, 2015. That's down from approximately 479,000 caught a year earlier, which is surprising since now even Middle Easterners are coming across.

So, while we have Veterans helping out the Border Patrol which is facing more cuts during a time when we should have better defenses on our border, Obama is pushing for more and more of an open border where illegals can simply walk in. Yes, a place where illegals, criminals or not, and refugees, terrorist or not, can enter freely without being stopped or screened.

And yes, that's just the way I see it.
Tom Correa

Obama spending Millions to Militarize the EPA

Friends, this is a story that was sent to me regarding wasteful spending in our government and the arming of an agency that does not need the military hardware.

The Environmental Protection Agency's mission is to protect human health and the environment. How does that mission necessitate purchasing military weapons for that agency? Why would they need to do so to do their job? What is wrong with citing someone and taking them to court for due process? Why would the EPA need guns?

On October 10th, 2015, the Washington Times, reported that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has spent millions of dollars over the last decade on military-style weapons to arm its 200 "special agents".

Yes, MILLIONS of dollars to arm 200 EPA regulatory agents. Friends, that means that even if they spent just ONE Million to arm, that is a tremendous amount of money to arm a single person.

Supposedly this is to fight "Environmental crime." But really, why does the EPA need to purchase weapons, handguns and fully-automatic assault rifles, body armor, camouflage equipment, unmanned aircraft, amphibious assault ships, radar and night-vision gear and other military-style weaponry and surveillance activities?

This from a new report by the watchdog group Open the Books leads us to ask what's going on in a time when the Obama administration is cutting spending on military equipment and arms -- and cutting the salaries of our troops?

"Protecting the environment just got real. With millions of dollars spent on military style weaponry, the EPA is now literally ensconced with all institutional force," said Adam Andrzejewski, founder of Open the Books and the author of the report.

"Our report discovered that when the EPA comes knocking they are armed with a thousand lawyers, arrest/criminal data, credit, business and property histories, plus a ‘Special Agent’ with the latest in weaponry and technology," Mr. Andrzejewski added.

The agency spends nearly $75 Million each year for criminal enforcement, including money for a small militia of 200 "Special Agents" who are supposedly in-charge of "fighting environmental crime."

Yes, the image of a  fully armed military SWAT Team from the EPA kicking down a door and frisking people because of an oil spill is not one that should come to mind when thinking about the EPA enforcing their regulations.

Congress granted police powers to the EPA in 1988, during the Reagan administration, to set up special agents to "enforce the nation’s laws by investigating cases, collecting evidence, conducting forensic analyses and providing legal guidance to assist in the prosecution of criminal conduct that threatens people’s health and the environment."

Nowhere does the law give them permission to arm, or say that they should be armed, or say that they should obtain military equipment to investigate cases, collect evidence, conduct forensic analyses and provide legal guidance. Besides the fact that there is nowhere in their statue that authorizes them to arm, the amount of money being spent on this just doesn't make any sense.

Believe it or not, as insane as it sounds, the EPA admits to the fact that each Special Agent costs taxpayers $216,000 per year in salary, travel, equipment, training and other expenses. And yes, the EPA's spending on military weapons is just one example of the agency’s questionable purchases highlighted in the 40-page report.

Open the Books, a nonpartisan and nonprofit group based in Illinois, scanned tens of thousands of the agency’s spending contracts totaling more than $93 billion from 2000 to 2014. Among the findings were hundreds of millions of dollars on high-end office furnishings, sports equipment and "environmental justice" grants "to raise awareness of Global Warming".

The report also reveals that seven of 10 EPA employees make more than $100,000 a year and more than 12,000 of its 16,000 employees were given bonuses last year despite budget cuts. The EPA also employs more than 1,000 attorneys, making it one of the largest law firms in the country.

And yes, to add insult to injury, the EPA also sent Millions of Dollars to so-called "International Organizations" -- mostly in support of Global Warming -- including groups in Mexico and China.

Friends, there are over 70 Federal Government agencies that have police powers. Yes, there are 70 agencies that have their own law enforcement agents. Just like the EPA, all are spending Millions of dollars to arm themselves.

Yes, this stinks! It stinks because this is all taking place while Americans are told that there will be Social Security cuts for Seniors, and cuts to disability benefits for Veterans. It also stinks because our troops are using worn out equipment and have not seen a cost of living salary increase. It stinks because federal agents for the EPA are making $100,000 a year and more for some agents, while our troops are on food stamps.

Obama cuts our military, cuts Social Security, cuts Veterans disability benefits, but finds funds for unnecessary military weapons for the EPA and other agencies. Friends, something is wrong when we have the Environmental Protection Agency arming themselves like some sort of small elite branch of our military -- all while the Obama administration cuts benefits and out military.

Frankly, I'm at the point of being fed up with this sort of wasteful spending. I've made up my mind that I will vote for any Republican who will close down the EPA and discontinue any other Federal agency who is doing things it was not originally created to do -- such as needlessly spending taxpayer dollars on weapons and gear!

Yes, that's just the way I see it.
Tom Correa

Thanksgiving 2015 & The Great Pumpkin Shortage

This time of year, Americans should be free of worry and filled with thanks. But with rising costs of food, clothing, and our ability to stretch a dollar becoming more and more challenging, Americans have more than our share of worries.

In California, its the drought that has adversely effected crop production and subsequently food prices are high. In the Midwest, it was unexpected rains. And yes, with those rains came a disaster for farmers there. All of this has led to worries about pumpkins!  Yes, not since the Great Depression have Americans had to worry about the availability of pumpkins.

We know that Pumpkin Pies are what tops off a Thanksgiving dinner. It is the favorite dessert for many, including me.

We know pumpkins are carved up for Halloween. And yes, Pumpkin Pies are traditional for Thanksgiving and Christmas in the United States and Canada. And frankly, if the rest of the world doesn't eat Pumpkin Pies -- that might be their major problem.

The pie consists of a pumpkin-based custard, ranging in color from orange to brown, baked in a single pie shell. And yes, though I've heard of it -- it rarely comes with a top crust. To make a Pumpkin Pie, one needs its main ingredients: pie shell, eggs, condensed milk, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and of course pumpkin.

The pie is generally flavored with cinnamon, powdered ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Allspice is also commonly used, and can replace the clove and nutmeg as its flavor is similar to both combined. Cardamom and vanilla are also sometimes used as batter spices.

Pumpkin Pies are usually made from canned pumpkin filling with all of the needed spices included. I didn't know any of this as I simply eat them, and have never tried making one.

Some recipes may also call for substitutes to be used, such as butternut squash instead of pumpkin. Yes, there are rebels everywhere!

While I can go into the whole history of the pumpkin, I will spare you by simply saying that pumpkin is a native to the continent of North America. Yes, it's American!

Pumpkins made their way to France and then England, or vice versa, and a Pumpkin Pie of sorts did not become a common addition to the Thanksgiving dinner until the Pilgrims brought pumpkin pies back to New England.

I say "Pumpkin Pie of sorts" because the folks back then prepared their English version of Pumpkin Pie by stuffing a pumpkin with apples, spices, and sugar and then baking it whole. Yes, I'd say their attempt at Pumpkin Pie making was sad at best.

While there are seasonal pumpkin pie-flavored products such as ice cream and such, throughout the United States it is traditional to serve pumpkin pie after Thanksgiving dinner. And yes, pumpkins are packed with healthy vitamins and nutrients that are great for heart health, great for your vision, fights cancer, wonderful for your mood, helps the immune system, and believe it or not is an energy food that helps keep waistlines in check. Of course, for me, it tastes great as pie!


A can of pureed pumpkin, typically used as the main ingredient in the pie filling is what a Pumpkin Pie is all about.

Commercially made pumpkin pie mix is made from Cucurbita pepo, Cucurbita maxima, and Cucurbita moschata pumpkins.

Food giant Libbey's Select uses the Select Dickinson Pumpkin variety of Cucurbita moschata pumpkins for its canned pumpkins.

So now, where's the problem you say? Well, there's a Pumpkin Pie shortage!  

Yes, there is a Pumpkin Pie shortage. Have I repeated myself enough to emphasis the true nature of how bad the situation is? Can you imagine homes with no Pumpkin Pies during this time of year? Can you imagine Thanksgiving with no Pumpkin Pie? Can you imagine an America with no Pumpkin Pie?

While some might not see this as an all out National Emergency, I'm sure there is a Pumpkin Pie fan out there who will have a tear in his coffee knowing that he going to be restricted to only one slice -- if at all.

How do I know this? In October, it was reported that we have a shortage of pumpkins. That was the word from the owner of Libby’s, the largest American pumpkin pie producer, after record summer rains damaged this year’s pumpkin crop.

Yields in Illinois, the center of American pumpkin production, are down about 50 percent from 2014, according to Nestle SA, Libby’s parent company. Yes, half of what it should be!

Libby’s which ordinarily produces 80 percent of canned pumpkin in the United States will this year make enough to bake about 45 million 8-inch pumpkin pies, half of what it originally planned.

I don't know if some are taking this calamity serious enough. For example, Roz O’Hearn, a spokeswoman for Nestle USA, said, "Maybe that means you’ll have one slice instead of two!"

Oh the humanity! Only one slice! 

That orange fruit, yes it's a fruit, may be the greatest victim so far of this summer’s record rainfall, which also dented corn and soybean yields in the eastern Midwest. The inclement weather meant delayed planting and germination and fewer blossoms turning into fruit, which means that much of the crop that were destined for processing was planted before June had to sit in water-logged fields.

The United States produced 1.31 billion pounds, that's over 600,000 metric tons, of pumpkins in 2014. Sales of pumpkin-pie filling in the United States were $134.1 million in the 52 weeks through August 22nd, 2015, according to data from Nielsen.

While Libby’s has contracts with farmers within a radius of about a 50 miles of its canning plant in Morton, a town that’s home to an annual pumpkin festival, that might not be enough.

The pumpkins Libby’s uses for canning aren’t suited for Halloween jack-o’-lanterns. So no, they were not the one used to light porches and scare away goblins. The pumpkins Libby uses is oval-shaped, pale orange and heavy, with a dense, meaty interior.

Addressing this emergency of sorts, Roz O’Hearn, spokeswoman for Nestle USA, said, "We think we’ll have enough pumpkins to get consumers through the important Thanksgiving holiday. But after that, there’s going to be a shortage, until you get to the next harvest."

For me, during Thanksgiving, I always thank God for his blessings. I'm always thankful that I can spend time with those I love and care about. And yes, I always make it a point to thank God for those who work so hard making the dinner the feast it is, those who worked hard to provide such a dinner.

Among the blessing that my wife and I are grateful for this year is that the Butte Fire, which raged through more than 70,000 acres and destroyed the homes of more than 500 people here in Calaveras and Amador Counties, didn't take our home. My wife and me are thankful to God that our home and small community of Glencoe was spared.

And yes, after our Thanksgiving dinner, we can look forward to that Pumpkin Pie and thank those Midwest farmers for saving the crop that they could. We can thank them for bringing in the crop that they could during this year's very wet conditions.

So friends, if you have a Pumpkin Pie? Among your thanks, don't forget to also be thankful that you have one.

May God Bless You and Yours. Happy Thanksgiving!
Tom Correa

Public Schools forcing Christian students to become Muslims

Pictured here are Christian and other non-Muslim students in a public school
being made to dress and practice Islamic rituals in the classroom.

Why are American public schools forcing Christian children, their students, to learn Muslim prayer? And frankly, since Christian students are not allowed Christian prayer in schools, why is it OK that they be forced to learn and recite Islamic prayers but not Christian prayers?

This last week a California public middle school teacher has found herself in hot water after having her class sing a song praising Islam. She thought the catchy tune was just the ticket to teach her seventh-graders about Islam.

The Anaheim teacher wrote the lyrics herself, using the melody of Rachel Platten’s "This Is My Fight Song," according to CBS Los Angeles affiliate KCAL-TV. 

One verse reads:
Like a sandstorm
In the desert
Sending camels
Into motion

Like how a single faith
Can make a heart open,
They might only have one god,
But they can make an explosion.

That last line was especially inappropriate, given the carnage left in Paris last week by Islamic State militants who used explosive suicide vests inside a soccer stadium.

The chorus begins:
Offers and Articles You Might Like
And all those things they have to say
Allah, Islam’s on the way

Susan Negron said she only found out about the song by accident, when her grandson brought it home from school. She and her daughter, Nichole Negron, both appeared before the Oceanview School Board on Tuesday to address their concerns.

"I believe that by singing this song, the children feel comfortable believing that maybe Allah is the only god, and maybe that they should start following him,” Susan Negron said. “And that I’m not OK with."

There are many instances around the country where this sort of Muslim indoctrination is taking place. For instance, it was reported recently that students going to public schools in Revere, Massachusetts, are not only being forced to learn the principles and core tenets of the religion of Islam, but they are also being forced to learn the Islam "conversion" prayer.

On November 20th, it was reported that a Utah middle school teacher was the target of backlash from parents over a homework assignment she gave. She instructed her students to design a propaganda poster for a Muslim terrorist organization such as the Islamic State group.

It was "supposed to help students understand the goals and methods of terrorist organizations, and how propaganda can be wrong," according to the local CBS affiliate KUTV Channel 2 News.

Believe it or not, this is at the High School level. These are 9th Graders. Yes, about 60 of them were given the assignment by a first year teacher at Salem Junior High School. Thankfully it was nipped in the bud after several parents began voicing complaints.

Lana Hiskey, a spokeswoman for Salem Junior High School, actually had the nerve to say, "We’re grateful when parents have a concern, that they will call the school and let the principal know immediately. There were just over 60 students involved in this assignment and we’ve had four phone calls or communication with parents that had concerns."

In other words, 4 parents out of 60 kids means that it wasn't a big deal to them. But frankly, her statement lacks information as to why this assignment was given? And is that teacher FIRED?

The assignment’s front page details "eight reasons why young Muslims join ISIS." On the reverse side, students were asked to design a "terrorism propaganda poster."



"She was just very enthusiastic and wanted students to understand that propaganda is not good,” said Hiskey, who admitted it was a first-year teacher and the assignment had not been approved.

One parent, who didn’t wish to be identified, told the station that he was concerned that his 14-year-old son could find himself on a terror watch list after having researched groups like the Islamic State on the Internet.

And no, there is no word as to what discipline action is being taken against that teacher!

So really, why is this going on in American PUBLIC SCHOOLS? And why are these children being threatened with failing grades if they refuse to learn and recite the Muslim prayers, or help make ISIS recruiting posters?

Why is this taking place in "public schools" that we've all been told is religion neutral ground where prayer is forbidden? And really, since Liberal Atheist parents get their panties in a twist every time some kid mentions "God" in schools? Why the liberal parents are OK with it?

Since it has been the Liberal parents of children in schools around the country, most being Atheist, who have complained and have gotten any mention of God out of public schools, why are they OK with worshiping Allah through Muslim prayer in our schools? I know I repeated myself, but it is a question as to why the Political Hypocrisy? If it were Christians teaching about Jesus Christ, the schools would be shut down and the whole staff sued!

As for Muslims, by simply reciting the "conversion prayer" -- you are officially converted to Islam. Is that what this is all about? Is this an effort to have American Christian children convert and become Muslims?

Parents who are pissed off have every right to be. They send their children to school to learn reading, writing, arithmetic, not to be forced to to recite the conversion prayer, known as the Shahada, and become Muslims.

When and where did this Muslim indoctrination start? It is simply wrong and a manipulation of young minds to accept a religion that is not theirs.

And yes, please don't kid yourself, Islamic indoctrination is happening in public schools all across America. Over the past few months, Islamic indoctrination is taking place in many states. It has become a nation-wide epidemic.

Is the U.S. Department of Education in charge of demanding that Muslim rituals be taught now in public schools? Is this what Obama meant by changing America? Is Obama's idea of change include the fact that he and his administration have used every opportunity possible to forcefully impose Islam on American life?

Parents from across the country are concerned about the teaching of Islam in their local schools. And rightfully so, after all, many schools are go beyond simply teaching about a religion and actually indoctrinating children into the Islamic faith.

And frankly, when did this bullshit about teaching children about religions start? When many of us went to elementary school, no such instruction was ever needed. So why do teachers and school administrators find it necessary to teach religion in public schools? Whatever happened to the whole "separation of church and state"?

Do schools need to teach about religions, and/or religious practices in public schools where a classroom may be filled with children who come from families made up of many religions? Where do public schools get off thinking that indoctrination, the teaching of Islam, is OK?

I read where students in Tennessee and Georgia were told to recite the Five Pillars of Islam -- the Islamic conversion creed -- while not learning about Christianity or Judaism. Some schools in Georgia reportedly went as far as to tell students that Allah is the same God worshiped by Christians. Imagine the nerve of these people!

At least one Tennessee middle school, yes a middle school, where Islam was covered for over three weeks, students were told to write "Allah is the only God" while there were no lessons on Christianity or Jesus Christ. And if you think it is only Tennessee and Georgia, think again. One high school in Wisconsin was reported to be forcing students to "pretend you are a Muslim."

Some are calling for equal time, but they miss the point -- there should be NO CLASSES ON RELIGIOUS PRACTICES IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS!

The United States Supreme Court has ruled against prayer in public school! 

So if the Supreme Court can, and has rule against Christian prayer, why it is that their ruling is not being enforced FAIRLY and EQUALLY across the board to all religions? 

Why are Christians targeted for saying the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance, or saying a prayer before lunch, yet school are teaching full-blown Muslim indoctrination courses to children who are not of the Muslim faith?

There is no legitimate reason to teach the tenants of Islam, or the Seven Sacrements of the Catholic Church, or Liberal Atheism. Since public schools have been deemed not a place for Christian prayer, then they should not be a place for any prayer of any religion.

Fair is fair, and what is good for one should be good for all!

Bottom line is this: Forcing students to adopt a particular religious viewpoint violates the Establishment Clause of the United States Constitution. And yes, teachers or not, those violating the law should be in jail or prison!

The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) is fighting to end the un-Constitutional teaching of Islam in public schools. They report, "Incredibly, as Islam continues to be taught in schools around the nation, students are being denied the right to establish Bible Clubs on campus, bring their Bibles to school, and speak about Christianity. Simply put, schools may not promote Islam while silencing Christianity."

As for learning about history, I really believe American history should be taught in public schools. As for classes in religious instruction, there is no reason to teach religious classes in a non-religious educational facility -- especially not Muslim Indoctrination 101.

And yes, that's just the way I see it.
Tom Correa

Harry C. Wheeler -- Lawman & Patriot

A close friend asked me to look into this lawman. He said that my readers would enjoy his story, and that I would be surprised with what I found. Well my friend was right in that I have found the story about Harry C. Wheeler very surprising. Now I'm hoping he is right in that you enjoy reading about this man.

Unlike many of the Old West's characters who we hear about, with most of what people know being just amplified myths and little fact, Harry Cornwall Wheeler was one of the real deals in the Old West. He's someone more folks should know about.

Harry Cornwall Wheeler was an Arizona lawman. He was the third Captain of the Arizona Rangers, the Sheriff of Cochise County, and a soldier in the United States Army in both the Spanish-American War and later in World War One. He did more in his fairly short life than most who lived much longer.

Harry Wheeler was born on July 23rd, 1875, in Jacksonville, Florida. the son of Colonel William B. Wheelsex of the United States Army. In 1897, at age 22, Wheeler enlisted in the 1st Cavalry and fought in the Spanish-American War before being given the rank of Sergeant and a medical discharge in 1902. He was said to be an excellent marksman with a rifle and pistol. After the Army, Wheeler joined the Arizona Rangers in 1903 and was promoted to Sergeant a mere four months later.

On October 23rd, 1904, Harry C. Wheeler was involved in his first gunfight at the Palace Saloon in Tucson, Arizona Territory. It all started just before midnight when Joe Bostwick is said to have slipped through the rear door of the Palace Saloon to rob the place. Bostwick's face mostly covered with a red bandana, reportedly complete with eye-holes. He brandished a Colt .45 Single Action pistol, and shouted, "Hands up!"

Four employees were on duty in the Palace that night. Those employees were the bartender, a craps dealer, a roulette dealer, and a porter. Along with the employees were four customers. One customer who is believed to be a man named M.D. Beede is said to have slipped out the front door and ran up Congress Street looking for the law.

Inside the Palace Saloon, Bostwick ordered all there to "Throw up your hands and march into the side room. Hold them up higher! Hold up your digits!" His instructions were heeded and the men filed by him. Bostwick then went over to the craps table and helped himself to the money that lay scattered about. What he didn't know was that outside on Congress Street, Mr. Beede had found Arizona Ranger Sergeant Harry Wheeler who had just emerged from Wanda’s Restaurant.

Beede approached Wheeler who had turned toward the Palace, and said, "Don’t go in there! There’s a holdup going on!" Supposedly Wheeler calmly replied. "All right, that’s what I’m here for" while pulling his own Single-Action Colt .45 from its holster.

Wheeler then stepped to the front door of the saloon, and immediately Bostwick spotted him and whirled to fire his revolver. Wheeler was already in position and let go with his first shot. His heavy .45 slug grazed Bostwick’s forehead above the right eye, and with that Bostwick fired again. This time he fired wildly.

Wheeler fired again and this time a .45 slug slammed into the right side of Bostwick's chest. Mortally wounded, Joe Bostwick collapsed to the floor.

When interviewed by a reporter for The Tucson Citizen, Wheeler commented:

"I am sorry that this happened, but it was either his life or mine, and if I hadn’t been just a little quicker on the draw than he was, I might be in his position now. Under the circumstances, if I had to do it over again, I think I would do exactly the same thing."

Wheeler was later involved in a shootout in Benson, where he killed a second man. It became known as the "Shootout in Benson." That took place on February 27th, 1907, when Arizona Ranger Sergeant Harry C. Wheeler attempted to detain a man named J. A. Tracy in Benson.

No one really knows why Tracy was being detained. But for whatever reason, it didn't sit well with Tracy who resisted arrest and instead produced a hideout gun.
Tracy then opening fire on Wheeler.

When the first shot went off, it was only then that Wheeler went for his pistol. Shots were exchanged at fairly close range, and when the smoke cleared both Tracy and Wheeler were badly wounded. J.A. Tracy died of his wounds. Luckily for Wheeler, after some time off, he fully recovered. It's said after that, he was a lot more conscientious about searching suspects.

Soon after that shooting incident in 1907, Wheeler replaced Thomas H. Rynning as Captain of the Arizona Rangers. He served as the agency's leader until its disbanding in 1909. Arizona Ranger Captain Harry C. Wheeler was the third Captain in Arizona Ranger history. He is considered an example of professionalism and fortitude.

In 1911, just two years after the Arizona Rangers disbanded, Harry C. Wheeler was elected Sheriff of Cochise County. He was re-elected in 1914 and again in 1916. It was during that time that he took on many growing problems along the border. During the turn of the century, smuggling across the border with Mexico was a serious problem.

When Arizona became a "dry" state with the banning of alcohol on January 1st, 1915, smuggling booze into Arizona became big business. Of course, because Cochise County bordered Mexico and the state of New Mexico, and both still allowing alcohol, Cochise County quickly became a conduit for both American and Mexican bootleggers and alcohol smugglers.

The Gleeson Gunfight

On the night of March 5th, 1917, Sheriff Wheeler and Deputy Gibson were returning to the Deputy's home in Gleeson. They were traveling in a 1915 Oldsmobile Touring Car. They had a full day of searching the Chiricahua Mountains for rum-runners, those smugglers that became such a problem. Because they were exhausted and could not safely drive in the dark, it was sunset when the two lawmen decided to stop and make camp for the night.

The location where they stopped was about two miles east of Gleeson. They decided to camp along the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks there. Almost as soon as they rolled out their blankets and laid down next to the car, they started taking incoming fire from a few Mexican outlaws. Their position was behind some rocks about 200 yards away from the railroad tracks. The first shot smashed the front window out of the car, the other shots were random.

Wheeler immediately grabbed a box of ammunition and his rifle. Gibson only had his revolver and the ammunition on his gun belt. Both Officers returned fire while attempting to gain better cover. Soon they climbed up the top of the railroad berm in an attempt to get a better look at their attackers.

The whole while they were moving forward, the two lawmen could hear the outlaws shouting insults to them in Spanish, saying, "We‍ '​ll fix you gringos! Come and get us now!" Yes, it sounds a lot like these days on the border.

By counting the muzzle flashes and were they were coming from, Wheeler and Gibson determined that there were at least four Mexican shooters firing from four different locations. The firefight lasted for nearly an hour as the two sides exchanged fire with over 100 rounds of ammunition being expended.

It was said that the moon was behind the lawmen and low on the horizon, which made them easy targets. Because of that, they decided to lie prone and wait until the moon went down to make a charge towards the outlaws. In the meanwhile, a couple of the outlaws advanced on the American lawmen under cover fire from the two others behind the rocks.

At about 50 yards from the railroad tracks, one of the Mexican shooters fired at Wheeler. It's said his round just missed him. As for Wheeler, he lay prone on the ground and used one of the rails to steady his rifle. He then rapidly fired six shots at the Mexican outlaw's muzzle flash. It was only a second later that the lawmen heard the sounds of groans coming from his Mexican assailant. In the dark and shooting at the muzzle flashes, he hit his target.

Although the fighting continued, Wheeler stopped the Mexicans assault and sent them the attackers back for cover. Soon the moon disappeared below the horizon, it was then that the lawmen made their charge and found the outlaws' camp had been abandoned in a hurry. The Mexicans ran into the desert to evade capture or being killed. And in the process, they would-be killers left ten cases of whiskey behind. The cases were attached to four donkeys.

That morning, the lawmen found horse tracks heading towards the Chiricahua Mountains. They also found a large pool of blood and tracks made by someone who apparently crawled away. Since no body was ever found, it still remains uncertain if any of the Mexican criminals were actually killed as result of the shootout with the two American lawmen.

Sheriff Wheeler and Deputy Gibson decided against chasing the outlaws right away, since their car was damaged by incoming fire. Instead they walked to Courtland where Wheeler was able to telephone his Chief Deputy Guy Welch who was in Tombstone. Welch brought out more guns and ammunition, as well as another Deputy to help in the pursuit of the Mexican shooters.

Wheeler knew that since the outlaws were in the Chiricahuas and most-likely heading south to cross the border, that they would have to go through Apache Pass in order to enter Mexico. Knowing this, he and his men abandoned the pursuit and went to Tombstone on April 7th, 1917, to drop off the confiscated whiskey.

The next day, they went to Apache Pass and succeeded in capturing two of the Mexican shooters. They then returned them to Gleeson to put them in jail there. One of the prisoners turned out to be the gang's leader. He was a man by the name of Santiago Garcia.

Later when Garcia was asked why he opened fire on Wheeler and Gibson, Garcia said that he and his men thought the lawmen were actually rival bootleggers. He said that were afraid that their cargo of booze would be hijacked. According to Garcia, he and his men retreated only when they found out that Wheeler and Gibson were lawmen.

If this story from a rum-runner doesn't sound right, it shouldn't. Remember, the Mexicans called out during the firefight stating that they knew exactly who they were shooting at. And more importantly, they knew exactly who they were trying to kill.

After that shootout, Wheeler and his men were dispatched to investigate a murder that took place in the town of Douglas. Also, they were sent to look into the death of an unknown man near Bisbee. The man found near Bisbee was found with a gunshot wound to the head.

A few months later in June of 1917, Sheriff Wheeler faced a different problem. Communist affiliated with the IWW Labor Union Local, a Union composed mainly of miners in Bisbee began a strike against a mining concern. Phelps Dodge Corporation was an American mining company founded in 1834 as an import-export firm by Anson Greene Phelps and his two British sons-in-law William Earle Dodge, Sr. and Daniel James.

With the expansion of the Western frontier, besides Eastern and European corporations taking over ranches, many of those same corporations acquired mines and mining companies. That included the very large Copper Queen Mine in Arizona. Phelps Dodge Corporation operated its own mines and acquired railroads to carry its products to be processed. By the late 19th Century, Phelps Dodge was known as a very large mining company.

Sheriff Wheeler knew there would be trouble. The International Workers of the World (IWW) had a reputation as being "bomb throwers," Communist agitators, Socialist, who wanted to attack American industry and were there to cause unrest. IWW members were commonly termed "Wobblies" and were an international radical labor union that was founded in 1905 by a group of Socialists and Communists. The philosophy and tactics of the IWW was described as being violent and revolutionary with ties to Socialists and Anarchists and Communists who wanted to overthrow the United States and our Capitalist system of individual freedom. The IWW promoted Communism through labor take overs and strikes in Europe and on the East Coast of the United States.

The IWW's activities were in the newspapers, and Sheriff Wheeler knew what he was up against. To combat the trouble of a thousand strikers showing up there, with the vast majority of strikers actually being brought in from outside of Arizona, Wheeler deputized 2,200 men from Bisbee and Douglas to act as a posse.

On July 12th, 1917, Sheriff Wheelers posse of 2.200 Deputies arrested 2,000 IWW strikers as they arrived in Bisbee. Of those, nearly 1,300 of the strikers and their Communist supporters were placed in 23 cattle cars and then "deported" out of Arizona. Wheeler sent the union agitators across the border to Hermanas, New Mexico, in what has since became known as the "Bisbee Deportation."

After that, Sheriff Wheeler tightened security in an effort to keep the citizens of Bisbee and Douglas safe from union retaliation. Because of threats to the population, Sheriff Wheeler established guard posts at all of the entrances to Bisbee and Douglas. During that time and for the next several months until the threat of harm passed, all citizens seeking to exit or enter the towns had to present a "passport" which was issued by the County Sheriff. Wheeler was taking the threats from the IWW membership seriously.

Any adult male in town who was not known to the sheriff's men was brought before a court, some called it the "Sheriff's kangaroo court" to find out who they were and what was their intentions for being there. Hundreds of people were tried in that court. Most were found to be indeed IWW members returning to cause harm. They were "deported" out of Arizona by Wheeler's deputies.

Some were actually threatened with being lynched by local vigilantes if they returned. There is a question regarding how many long-time citizens of Bisbee were deported along with the radical Communist agitators. In many cases, it was found that many were sympathetic to the IWW and were conspirators in the union's effort to disrupt life there.

By early 1918, he resigned his post as County Sheriff to join the United States Army to fight in World War One. He was promoted to the rank of Captain and soon went to Europe to fight Germans.

Also known as the First World War, or the Great War, World War One was a global war centered in Europe that began on July 28th, 1914, and lasted until November 11th, 1918. The United States declared war against Germany and mobilized a force of 4,355,000 between April of 1917 and December of 1918.

From this, in just under 20 months of fighting, American casualties amounted to 116,516 killed in action, 234,000 were wounded, and 4,500 were prisoners and missing in action. Yes, that took place in just under a year and eight months.

While Wheeler was gone doing his patriotic duty, a federal commission was appointed by President Woodrow Wilson to investigate the labor disputes in Arizona. The commission concluded in its final report, issued November 6th, 1917, that "The deportation was wholly illegal and without authority in law, either State or Federal."

On May 15th, 1918, the U.S. Department of Justice ordered the arrest of 21 men which included Phelps Dodge Corporate executives, Calumet, and Arizona Company executives, and several Bisbee and Cochise County elected leaders and local law enforcement officers. Those law enforcement officers arrested included Sheriff Deputies. It would have included Sheriff Harry C. Wheeler himself if he hadn't been serving in France at the time with the American Expeditionary Force during World War One. 

A pre-trial motion by the defense led to a Federal District Court releasing all of the 21 men on the grounds that "no federal laws had been violated." And even though the Justice Department appealed, the appeal was denied in United States v. Wheeler, 254 U.S. 281 (1920).

In that decision, Chief Justice Edward Douglass White ruled for an 8-to-1 majority that "no federal law protected the freedom of movement." Chief Justice White argued that "protecting a citizens' right to movement was a state function and had to be enforced solely in state court."

Wheeler resigned as Sheriff of Cochise County to enlist in the U.S. Army at the rank of Captain. Then in December of 1918, he was given an Honorable Discharge after being called back to Arizona for further court action based on the Bisbee Deportations. Once cleared, Wheeler attempted to get his old job back as he again ran for Cochise County Sheriff in 1922. But sadly, he was actually defeated in the primary.

After his defeat in the 1922 County Election, it's said that he retired and purchased a peach orchard in Cochise Stronghold about 20 miles north of Gleeson. Harry C. Wheeler was known to travel between his home in Douglas and his farm in Cochise Stronghold. He was said to have been content that he did his duty to keep those in his care as safe as he could. Knowing that, he is said to have concentrated his life on making his farm a success.

A few years passed before he contracted pneumonia and died on December 17th, 1925. Yes, he lived a full life for a man who only lived to be 50 years of age.

For me, after reading about Harry C. Wheeler, I came away seeing him as a great lawman, an outstanding Arizona Ranger, and an American patriot. I can empathize with him having to do things that may be considered controversial. I can understand walking that line to do what is needed to protect those in your care, I have been put in similar situations.

He was a straight shooter. He was a man who lived by the code that says an oath is an oath, duty is duty, right is right, and anything short of upholding your duty and sacred honor is failure. He took heat for some of the things that he needed to do. And frankly, I respect that more than anyone can possibly know.

All in all, he stood tall. Very tall while being someone who did right by the people he was tasked to protect and keep safe. Yes, he could certainly be proud of that. That was his responsibility, and he fulfilled it.

In today's world where we have elected officials who shirk their responsibilities, they can learn a great deal from Harry C. Wheeler. After all, we need more who fulfill their responsibilities and do their duty, abide by their oath, and do right by us who they are tasked to protect and serve.

That's just the way I see it.

Tom Correa