Thursday, November 24, 2022

Let's Put Thanks Back In Thanksgiving


We've made it. Today is Thanksgiving Day 2022. Today is the one day a year that Americans officially set aside to give thanks for what we have. Later on, I will tell you why we should be thankful every day, for now, I need to answer your concerns. 

As for my readers who have written to say they have "nothing to be thankful for," some of you have sent me quite a list to think about. And frankly, you are right that we should be concerned about many of the issues that plague us today. 

Rising crime and the people who want to defund the police are a problem. We should ask why our border is not secure. This is especially true knowing that huge numbers of those coming across our border are drug cartel members, violent criminals, and carriers of Fentanyl. We should stop children from being smuggled across the border for horrible reasons. And yes, it is a fact that known terrorists are coming into our country.  

I agree that parents attending school board meetings are right in demanding that public schools stop teaching Critical Race Theory which is designed to specifically instill division and create hate for others. I hate that parents are now being painted as "America's Enemies." I hate that half the population today is frightened of our own government and that we have a president in the White House who actively works to divide our nation to the point of calling the millions of Americans who voted for his political opponent "Enemies of Democracy." 

I understand how hard it is to make ends meet today. I understand how tough it is to make the hard choices of either buying gas or food or putting off paying a bill. Like every other working family, my family is also faced with paying $5 for a head of lettuce, $6 for a gallon of gas, soaring electricity bills, higher taxes, 40-year high Inflation, and all of the other pain that Biden is responsible for creating. 

No, I have no idea why he doesn't realize that petroleum is what it takes to manufacture thousands of everyday products that we use. I have no idea who is advising him to intentionally shut down America's oil, natural gas, and coal producers. 

It's as if Democrats are too stupid to realize that the oil industry is vital to us. Even if we somehow miraculously figured out how to eliminate the use of oil in the energy sector, we will still require oil to manufacture goods. Yes, you would think the President of the United States would have advisors who are smart enough to understand that we need oil to make computers, cell phones, clothing, and thousands of other products. 

Yes, just as you would think that a President would understand that coal is vital to making steel. Among other things, we cannot build buildings, ships, and bridges without coal. My friends, I really don't think the President of the United States or his advisors know that synthetic graphite is made out of oil and coal. Yes, the main ingredient in the batteries that supply power for Electric Vehicles and the grid battery storage for "clean" electricity is made out of fossil fuels. And yes, I understand that Biden and the Democrats want to shut down America's oil and coal industries. Biden has said so. I get it. Yes, I get it.

And yes, I know really well that we have a lot of other problems including private businesses that now have to compete with states and the federal government for workers. And no, it's not that more people are working for states and the federal government. The problem is that the government is paying people not to work, not to try to hold a job, and not to seek employment. 

Back in the 1970s, someone out of work was eligible for 12 weeks of unemployment benefits. They also had to prove that they were actively trying to find a job. After 12 weeks, benefits were done. 

Now, in California for example, a person can receive State Unemployment Insurance benefits for up to 26 weeks. And when that's done, when a person runs out of available weeks of benefits, that person is eligible for to up 53 weeks under the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) program. If you think that's something, guess again. Today, the government makes it so that someone not wanting to work may qualify for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) if they were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. If eligible, that person can receive up to 86 weeks of PUA benefits. So really, how does a private business compete with the government when the government is handing out that sort of money?

So yes, my friends, for those of you who are writing to tell me that there is very little to be thankful for during these hard times, I get it. I really do understand that your farm equipment can't harvest a crop if you can't afford fuel. I understand that your trucks can't get to market to keep the supply chain intact for the same reason. 

And yes, since I'm paying the highest prices in feed costs for my rescue horses that I ever have, I know really well that ranchers are having a horrible time affording to feed their herds. And of course, I know that if cattle producers are having a hard time feeding their herds, then pig and poultry producers must be having it just as tough. The public should understand that that's why the price of food is through the roof these days. 

So, with all of our concerns, our worries, our problems, why do I believe that we still need to put the "Thanks" back into Thanksgiving?

Well, it has to do with freedom and family. 

During this last election, the Mainstream Media projected that there would be a "Red Wave" and we should consider ourselves failures if we Conservatives didn't produce anything short of a Tsunami. Since a lot of our nation's problems, as the list above that my readers have provided to me illustrates, are politically created, we should be thankful that we have the freedom to try to improve things. 

And while we certainly did not create a "Red Wave," although more than 6 Million more Republican voters voted in 2022, and not all of the nation went "Red," we should be thankful that we got rid of Nancy Pelosi. In fact, while our political adversaries in the Mainstream Media play it down in an effort to reassure their Leftist Base that America wants to be a Socialist/Communist nation, we have proven them wrong by retaking the House of Representatives. And yes, that's another big thing to be thankful for. 

How does that help us? If for any other reason, our retaking the House of Representatives means that Americans are now in a position to stop the attacks on working-class Americans. We can be thankful that now we have more of a "checks and balance" system of government -- rather than an oligarchy government run by a small group of Leftist Democrats having total control of our country. And yes, my friends, that in itself is something that should give us hope for a better future. It's definitely something that we can now be thankful for. 

There is something else. With all of the rampant voter fraud and overt criminal acts pertaining to our elections these days, a sight that frankly makes us look terrible in the eyes of the free world, we can be thankful that our system still works at all. If anything, the last two elections have shown us that computer technology is the real enemy of our Republic -- because it's now been proven that such technology can be manipulated to benefit the criminal and his or her forces who want to cheat to win.  
Of course, our knowledge of this being the case is also something that we can be thankful for. We can now fix it -- if we want to.

So, over the last few paragraphs, I've voiced your concerns. In reality, they are our concerns. Of course, some of you said that I wouldn't. Some of you have written to say that I only write about fluff these days, that I was afraid to write about what is on the minds of all of us these days, and that I was somehow avoiding the problems that we face today. 

Well, that's not true. We all face the ills of our world in different ways. We all face our day-to-day problems differently. I try to remain optimistic. I try to remain hopeful. And yes, to do so, I try to remember what is personal and close to my heart. I try to remember what I am thankful for. 

I keep in mind that I have a loving wife who I'm extremely thankful for having in my life. I remember that my Mom, at 88 years of age, is still doing okay. Sure she's had some ups and downs lately, but she's a fighter who is not giving up. And yes, I'm very thankful for that. 

Lately, I've been stricken with a horrible case of "writer's block." Besides that taking place lately, I have become very disappointed by a few people who I thought were my friends. As funny as it sounds, their attacks on me are something that I'm now very thankful for. Think about it, they revealed their shady and immoral character. They have shown themselves to be the lowlifes that they truly are.  And yes, as strange as it might sound, as disgusted and disappointed in them as I have been lately, I'm very thankful. In fact, I feel blessed that I now see them for who they really are. They are just scum that I'm now blessed to not have to work with any longer.  

Maybe that's why I believe we can find thanks in our smallest blessing. Americans need to be thankful every day and not simply one day a year. We can start by putting the "Thanks" back into Thanksgiving. 

Among that which we can be thankful for is that we have the ability to hold on, persevere, accomplish great things, be resilient, and conquer our ills. While some in other nations have these traits, we can be thankful that Conservative Americans do it best.

And yes, my friends, there are honest differences between Conservative and Liberal Americans. Yes, just as there's a real difference between Red and Blue Americans in Red and Blue States.  

Conservative Americans don't give a damn for weak-kneed individuals who surrender to the political whims of a few who want to control us. We refuse to encourage those who want to make something as silly as pronouns a problem. We reject the idiotic notion of rewriting history to fit the grievances of a few who want to capitalize on the ills of the past -- ills that they themselves never experienced. Americans don't need to be told that making us pay off the loans taken out by the ignorant is not right.

Conservative Americans don't need to be convinced of the sheer lunacy on the part of the Left who are trying to spread the crazy idea that inanimate objects such as roads and bridges can be racist. We know that trying to convince the world that there are more than just two genders is insanity. We fully understand that trying to change what we all know as scientific fact is dumb. We get it. We really get it because we all know that some things are indisputable. And yes, Conservative Americans truly understand that trying to create genders that don't exist, and actually using children as human lab rats, all just to support an immoral political agenda, is morally repugnant. It is wrong.

And yes, it's all about control. And yes indeed, I know full well that Conservative Americans will not accept being controlled by others. Liberals, those who are Artificial Americans, don't mind it because they don't understand that about us. We can all thank God that Authentic Americans are Conservative Americans.

America is based on the idea that we aren’t subservient to the edicts of Kings or Presidential mandates. While we can also thank God for giving us the strength to rebel against oppression and those who demand that we be submissive, being submissive does not feel comfortable for Conservative Americans. And yes, defying tyranny is as American as Apple Pie.

While Democrats seem to be fine with being on their knees, Conservative Americans understand the concept of defying servitude very very well. Maybe that's why I believe that God has blessed us. Yes, even with all of the problems that we face today, I really believe that God has blessed us immensely.

Because we can all be thankful that God has given us the ability to reason, to be fair and honest, truthful and trustworthy, reliable and respectful, as well as being kind and considerate, we can also be thankful that we are not blind nor ungrateful for those things which we have been blessed with. Among our blessings is that of living in a free country where defying oppression is an instinctive part of our very character. Of course, Liberals don't seem to mind being on their knees. 

My friends, Americans, in general, don't have to like not having political representation. We don't have to accept increased unfair taxation, overbearing rules, or burdensome regulations. We don't have to like amoral or abhorrent social changes. We can decide for ourselves whether such issues are acceptable or not. This is part of an inherent quality that is ingrained in us. It is part of the American character. Sadly, it is not a part of the subservient Liberal mindset where submissiveness to the government is admired and encouraged. Of course, the question as to why Liberals want masters and disdain freedom is beyond all reasoning.

A disdain for freedom goes against the heart of being a Conservative American. I believe the love of freedom goes to the heart of most Americans. And really, I really believe that Liberals, those who want to treat themselves, their wishes, or their beliefs as being less important than the demands of the government, are a relatively small but vocal minority. 

Of course, when it comes to fighting maliciousness or unjust treatment, or an abuse of power, be it big or small, this is an indispensable part of who we are. I believe it is rooted in our concern with the rightness or wrongness of things. And yes, it is rooted in our love of freedom. 

I believe it's one of the many intrinsic virtues that God has blessed us with. And while I just wish the love for freedom was a bigger part of the Liberalism belief system that exalts what they see as the benefits of being slaves to the government, our love for freedom is among God's blessings that we should be thankful for. 

It's one of the many reasons that I can honestly say, "Happy Thanksgiving!"

May God Bless you and yours!

Tom Correa