I Am a Canadian Who Doesn't Understand Meme

The State of Economy: Housing

Deceptively Dishonest Reporting to Engender Greed Against Corporations

A Realization of Proper Self Defense

Relational Models to the National Debt

Trillion is an easy word to say, but it is a REALLY, REALLY LARGE number. Just how large is it? It is larger than what computer enthusiasts and electrical engineers think of in terms of numbers. It is astronomically large. Here are some relational objects to get you started. Our national debt is currently at $16 trillion. Harry Reid has proposed to raise the ceiling to $18.794 trillion.

Think of it this way:
1 kilobyte (KB) of memory is not very big, but can hold 1024 characters in a text document. This article is 2607 characters
An image on the Internet is, on average, about 210,933 bytes (~205.99KB)
A floppy disk holds 1,509,949 bytes = 1,474 KB = 1.44 MB
A 5 Megapixel image taken on a digital camera is approximately 3.5 to 5 MB (~5 million bytes)
A CD is 700 MB = ~700 million bytes
A lightning bolt has 1 billion volts (our deficit is over 16,000 lightning bolts measured in volts)
A desktop CPU, or processor, is about 3.0GHz = 3 billion hertz, or 3 billion instruction cycles per second (your smart phone processor is about 1.2GHz, 1.2 billion instruction cycles per second).
A DVD is 4,700 MB = 4.7GB
An average hard drive in a computer system sold is 500 GB = 500 billion bytes


If you buy an extra hard drive, it may be 1,000 GB = 1TB = 1 trillion bytes

$1 trillion in stacked $100 bills
Click for more info 

In those 1 trillion bytes of data, I can store all of my documents, several hundred CDs worth of MP3 music. 3 video projects (which are HUGE), 10-20 movies (or more), 10 or more major game titles (which are HUGE), several virtual machines and MUCH MUCH MORE. And I still don't fill the hard drive.

A server room for a small business of, say, 50-200 people will not have 16 TB of hard drive space. If you go in your office, you would have to gather up 32 to over 100 computers to get 16TB of hard drive space (office computers will have small-ish hard drives)

1 trillion seconds ago is 26,700 BC.

The largest stable star ever found is VY Canis Majoris. It is MASSIVE. It has a radius of 1.227 billion miles and can fit 9.2 billion suns in it (remember, we're dealing with volume, the numbers aren't linear, but volumetric). If it was in our solar system, it would reach beyond Jupiter. Our national debt is 13,039 VY Canis Majoris radii miles wide.

16 trillion is 16x10^12 or 16E12.
One lightyear is 5.878E12 miles. Our national deficit is over 3 lightyears long measured in miles. The nearest star system, Alpha Centauri, is 4.24 lightyears away.

This is STAGGERING. It is no wonder one may not be able to wrap their brain around it.

My guess is that by 2016, our national debt will be...

Inspiration

Those who know me and Noelle know that we have put in a lot of work and effort during this political season. I must tell you how I kept going. It wasn't easy, but Mitt Romney inspired me. I saw that he was a tireless worker. He could put 60 hours a week in at work, still be a Bishop or Stake President, and still take care of his family needs. I'm not nearly as busy as that and, by contrast, not as productive. Mitt's inspiration to me changed me a little bit and throughout the year. I was more productive and very active. And Noelle was supportive the entire time. Mitt Romney has inspired me to be a better American.

Similarly, I plan to do more for the needy, the infirm and the widowed. I plan to be a better Christian. I have always given to charity, as any LDS member does, but I was not always forthcoming with my time. Mitt Romney has inspired me to be a better Christian.

By contrast, I am near giving up hope. Why do I work when my pay is deducted and my efforts aren't rewarded. I can easily become a taker and let the government subsidize me. By contrast, Obama inspires me to do nothing. He inspires me to be worse person, a bitter and condescending American. He inspires me towards evil.

US Spec Ops: The Truly Elite -Updated

I wonder how many of you truly understand the quality of person it takes to be a Navy SEAL, an Army Ranger or Green Beret, etc, etc. The only thing I know about it is what I've seen from various Discovery Channel, Military Channel, or National Geographic shows. Which is to say, not much. But they give the stats. The washout rate is high, only ~25% make it through SEAL training. It is TOUGH. We see the NFL players, the NBA players, they are the elite of their sport. A Spec Ops troop will have the physical attributes to play those sports, but will also have the fortitude to keep that up for hours on end, but will also have the intelligence to carry out a mission in FUBAR. These men are incredible. And the United States spends a lot of time, money, and resources making sure our elite are ready.

And we lost 2 a few weeks ago. Two.

We don't lose SEALs. We don't lose Rangers. We don't leave them out there to battle alone if at all possible. But Obama, his administration, did just that. These 2 SEALs, Ty Woods and Glen Doherty, attempted to be the rescue team for their colleagues, but their Supreme Commander, the Commander in Chief, did not have their backs.

And what does Hillary Clinton have to say to the father of one of the SEALs? "We will make sure that the person who made that film is arrested and prosecuted." Really? The film? That idiot was practicing his First Amendment Right.

I apologize. I have no ability to close this post. I leave you with this.

TRULY SCANDOLOUS!!! THEY WERE DENIED SUPPORT THREE TIMES WHILE THEY STILL HAD THE ADVANTAGE. Why is FoxNews the only one covering this? http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/10/26/cia-operators-were-denied-request-for-help-during-benghazi-attack-sources-say/

Obama Makes the Case for Romney

I've seen bits and pieces of the following floating around, but I've not seen these arguments put together and succinctly like this. Perhaps you have, I got it from a friend on facebook. Thanks Michael.

The President has a new line of criticism to Romney.

"When it comes to our foreign policy, you seem to want to import the foreign policies of the 1980s, just like the social policies of the 1950s and the economic policies of the 1920s," -Barack Obama to Mitt Romney.

So let me get this straight... If we elect Romney we will return to a foreign policy of peace through strength? The foreign policy of Ronald Reagan which brought down the Evil Empire and made the world a safer place.

If we elect Romney we will return to the moral principles of the America of the 1950s, before the hippies counter-revolution? We will return America to a time when we had Dwight Eisenhower in the White House, a deeply decent man who always tried to do what was in the best interest of the entire nation.

If we elect Mitt Romney we will return to the economic policies of the 1920s? So we will return to the America of Calvin Coolidge when we had the period of highest prosperity and economic growth the world has ever known.

According to Barack Obama if we vote for Mitt Romney we will have the foreign policy of Ronald Reagan, the moral decency of Dwight Eisenhower, and the economic prosperity of Calvin Coolidge... Not bad. Not bad at all.

Team Romney in Boston has not been able to make a better case for Romney than Obama has.

Instapundit also stumbled on the theme. 

Fluke's Fluke of a Rally

As you may recall from this past week, Sandra Fluke held an Obama rally in NV where it was reported that there were 10 people in attendance. You may have wondered whether or not that 10 included reporters. Well, I have an answer. As it turns out, I have a good friend whose brother was one of those 10.

Apparently, this brother is as hard core a Romney fan as I am. He reported that 2 were reporters, 6 were Obama staffers, and the last person, dressed in standard hippy fare, was actually there to listen. so, this "rally" turned out even worse than reported. Sandra Fluke spoke to a total of 1 interested Obama supporter.

Debate Thoughts by Machtyn

The final debate has just completed and I think Romney has built upon his lead in every one. He was able to control the tempo and tenor of every debate. The first was a fluke for Obama, but it was the game changer. Romney was able to control that debate like no other. In the second debate, Romney attacked and went hard. He caught Obama on his heels and kept up the pressure. Finally, Obama tried to attack Romney and drag him low, but Romney would have none of it. Obama's attacks failed and made him look little, while Romney looked Presidential. As Charles Krauthammer stated after the debate, "Romney went large. Obama went very, very small – shockingly small."

Romney will win the Presidency. In my opinion, Romney came across just as knowledgeable and more capable to handle the foreign policies of the nation than Obama. This debate did not move the needle for the partisans, but in the following days the independents will move. Dick Morris has been a pretty good score keeper of the debates. He has Romney winning on points. A PPP poll post-debate had the following question for Independents:

PPP post-debate INDYs only key stat: "More/less likely to vote after debate" - Obama 32 more/48 less. Romney 47 more/35 less.
— NumbersMuncher (@NumbersMuncher) October 23, 2012

16 point negative swing against Obama and a 12 point positive swing for Romney. In other words, Romney won this thing.

But this final debate was not the clincher I would have liked it to be. Watching Luntz's focus group confirms that to me. They felt that Romney was strong on the economy, but Obama was strong on foreign policy. However, most seem like they will vote for Romney as this election is about the economy. They understand a strong economy is a strong America and that will pay the military bill to create a strong military.

A Political Allegory of the Farmer

I've had some interesting discussions with a wrong headed liberal who refuses to believe anything good about Mitt Romney. She is a co-worker of mine, so it makes it interesting. While pondering the last discussion I had with her, I came up with what I thought was an interesting allegory. Here it is.

Suppose you are a very successful, wealthy farmer. Your farm consists of pigs, cows, chickens, corn, wheat, etc., etc. You have hired hands and a sweet family. Being a successful and very generous farmer, you don't mind that you have some people who come in and take some ears of corn, or some wheat for bread. Despite giving of your farm's products very generously to various charities that service those in need, you instruct your hired hands to do nothing about them. Let the intruders take what they will. After all, you are very successful and very wealthy. It doesn't hurt. After some time the intruders start taking pigs and cows. You think, "That's not so bad, they deserve a little meat once in awhile."

However, you notice a disturbing trend. While taking your fruits into the stores in town, you notice some vandalism to the property. Broken fences, spray painted barns and rocks. Not a problem, just an annoyance. But farther into town you see posters, fliers, and other propaganda all slandering your good, and very generous, name. Some of the handbills even threaten violence against you. This does not seem right. After all, you share your wealth with those in need and with anyone who asks.

You try to appease the people, talk with those responsible. However, violence does erupt. Many of your hired hands are bullied or beaten.  Even your family is starting to get roughed up.  The next week, your foreman is found dead, having been killed while looking for potential employees to hire. What is your course of action?

If you are Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, you go to the town and post an apology at the town hall and send a truck with speakers to blast that apology to the people.

Harry Reid Caught in His Lie

TOO FUNNY! Harry Reid doesn't address the fact that he lied on the Senate floor, but instead attacks Romney for paying TOO MUCH in taxes.

[Harry Reid] called Romney's accounting "galling" and said the documentation "reveals that Mitt Romney manipulated one of the only two years of tax returns he's seen fit to show the American people – and then only to 'conform' with his public statements."

Yes, Romney failed to take a tax deduction on about 40% of his charitable giving to remain consistent with his public statements. So all Reid has is to call Romney's accountants "galling". Like Republicans have always tried to tell Democrats, there is nothing stopping them from paying more in taxes... something Warren Buffett still hasn't figured out for all his complaining about the low tax code.


And then Team Obama takes the other side of the coin. They released a statement that seems like it was prepared last year.

Meanwhile, President Barack Obama's campaign also released a statement on Friday saying the GOP candidate took advantage of "complex loopholes and tax shelters only available to those at the top."

In other words, Romney didn't pay enough. Well, that's consistent with the Obama admin, they haven't changed their state of the union address since inauguration.

Now it's Harry Reid's turn. "Dave Buell, chairman of the Washoe Country Republican party in Mr. Reid's political backyard of Nevada, certainly thinks" (Seth McLaughlin, Washington Post) it is time for Harry Reid to release his tax returns and explain how he earned his millions on a senatorial salary.

Please check us out on Facebook and If you like what you see, please "Like" us. You can find us here.

Neither Healthy nor Hunger-Free

FoxNews has an article about the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 – legislation promoted by Michelle Obama, which is neither keeping some kids Healthy nor Hunger Free. The Federal law is a one-size fits all solution for school lunches. Therefore, you get the 6'3" high school linebacker, who burns through 3000 calories during afternoon practice, being forced to eat (if he buys the school lunch) a 780 calorie lunch, the same as that skinny kid who just grows tall, but never gains a pound... even though he can burn through the calories just as fast, the same as the 5'4" 240 pound kid who really does need to lose wait, but doing it this extremely may be dangerous to his/her health.

Don't get me wrong, we've got some fat kids. But school lunches are not the problem. It's the lack of exercise, too much air conditioning (why go outside and play when it's cool inside), and too much tv/games.

Now we've also got a free-market problem on our hands. They've reduced the food, reduced the calories, and reduced the price. Wait, no! Haha! The government does not reduce prices! No, they raised the price of lunch 10 cents. Nothing like a government agency to waste millions of dollars on overages and waste. (See also Amtrak's $10 burger)

Small Criticism of the Romney Campaign

I don't know if anyone from the Romney campaign reads this site. I hope so. Anyone who knows me, knows that I am an avid defender of Mitt Romney. I think that if given the chance, he will go down as one of the greatest Presidents in American history. Right there with Reagan, or better.

However, he has to become President first. September is half gone. October is only 30 days, then Nov 6th, is just a week away. 49 days left. All of his avid defenders said, just wait. Wait until after the conventions. Mitt will open up then.

We know that of the swing states, Ohio is one of the biggest. The Cleveland Browns were playing the Cincinnati Bengals today. Two major markets in Ohio. Pretty much the entire state would be watching that game. It was reported that the Obama campaign had at least one 1-minute ad during the game. Romney had zero. WHAT'S UP WITH THAT?!

The NFL is broadly accepted by both Republicans and Democrats alike. It is a very blue-collar type of game. These are the voters Mitt needs in Ohio, especially. This was a missed opportunity.

Now, for a dose of reality. In the grand scheme of things, it may not be that big of a deal. Obama is doing a fine job shooting himself in the foot. But if no one sees that he's just shot himself, did it really happen? We know the media will not report the facts of the recent international mess in such a way to make the President look bad (unlike what they did to President Bush.) So, Team Romney, tell the story!

I am patient. But when a one-off opportunity presents itself, attack it! And this Browns/Bengals game would have been a perfect opportunity. In my opinion, of course.

Laundry List of Obama's Failures (not the full basket)

I don't take this message lightly. But today's events are the transparency that President Obama doesn't want you to see. But he knows he's going to lose... he has dropped his facade.

THE UNITED STATES IS IN DIRE TROUBLE. WE HAVE NOVEMBER 6TH TO CHANGE IT.

Today in Cairo, Egypt, the US embassy was raided, the US flag pulled from the pole, and a black flag raised as chants of "There is no God but Allah and Mohammad is his messenger" were heard.

Today in Libya, the US embassy was raided and burned to the ground. An American has been killed.

Today, US Intelligence reports that Egypt's Intelligence chief and a top Iranian spy met in a secret meeting. This obviously causes fear in Israel. (Not that our President makes it to any of his Intelligence meetings.)

What is the President of the United States of America's response to all of this? He rejects a requested meeting with Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu. President Obama's excuse is... "I'm too busy," then promptly announces an appearance on David Letterman.

When it was announced that the language of God and Israeli support be restored to the Democratic platform because Obama wanted it, who believed it then? Who still believes it now?

Moody's looks to downgrade US credit... again. Twice in one Presidency, while the President tries to blame others for the problem.

The Washington Post states what I am feeling, "Obama is on track to have the worst job record since WWII"

WE HAVE A USURPER IN OUR WHITE HOUSE. He MUST be impeached for he has performed a multitude of actions that are deemed impeachable (the above list is not that list). But this won't happen. The only way to remove him from office is by election.

SOUND THE WARNING AND GET OUT THE VOTE! WE MUST ELECT MITT ROMNEY AS THE NEXT PRESIDENT TO RESTORE AMERICAN EXCEPTIONALISM.

Romney/Ryan 2012 Money Bomb Event Results

THANK YOU ALL!!! The Romney/Ryan 2012 Money Bomb Event has come to a close.  As promised, I will now share the results.

For the 24 hour period between 12:00 Noon EST on 9/6/2012 and 12:00 Noon EST on 9/7/2012, the event was able to raise $1,867.  There were 36 donors that made between $3 and $250 donations (mean=$51.86, mode=$15.00).

Again, THANK YOU!

Okay, so you may think these numbers are small, the organization and word-of-mouth advertising, in relation to a national organization, was equally small.  With a handful of promoters, we got the word out on twitter, facebook, and various other social networks and forums (such as RightSpeak.net).  And with that, I am pleased with the results.

Romney Money Bomb 9-6-2012

Okay, here's the deal. I would LOVE to show the strength of Romney's campaign. What better way than to donate a massive amount of money to his campaign on the very day that Barack Obama gives his acceptance speech.

Give what you can, $3, $5, $50, but not over $2500 total donation. I will announce the result of this money bomb tomorrow at noon. The money bomb will be active for a 24 hour time period.

Donate Here or click the image.

Democrats Love to Shove

It seems the Democrats have a problem following the rules. After having spent far too much time shoving ObamaCare down our throats instead of trying to solve the jobs problem, they turn around and forcefully shove a result that clearly didn't happen down their own delegate's throats.

If you haven't yet heard, the Democrat platform removed God and the support of Israel. Apparently, they got word that this might not sit too well with the Christians and Jews in their party.  As such, they decided to put to vote an amendment that replaced the wording into their platform.

They needed a 2/3rds majority vocal vote.  Did they get it?

Watch and listen:


Clearly they did not. At best it was 50/50. To me, having listened to it on the radio, the Nays outnumber the Yeas.  As such, it did not meet the 2/3rds majority to implement the amendment and the Democrat party affirmed its antagonism towards God and their anti-semitism.

A Response for Those Who Think Republicans Prevented Unity

In response to a facebook commenter who hadn't yet made up their mind whether or not they would be voting for Obama again, I made the following arguments. I felt they were good enough to post here. I am also willing to take some criticism on the argument. I would like for this argument to be a rock solid response for anyone who claims that the President hasn't gotten any support from the Republicans. Many times, Republicans have come to the table to hash out disagreements. What were the results?

Chick-Fil-A Appreciation Day

Like hundreds of thousands of other people today, I went to a Chick-Fil-A to support the owner's freedom to say what he wants to say, whether or not I agree with him. It just so happens that I fully support the definition of marriage as being between a man and woman. (The days of polygamy are over, so that's a non-issue anymore.)

So as I drove to the store, I knew that there would be a large parking lot next to the Chick-Fil-A on Westport Rd for the Cheddar's restaurant, and I figured I would park there. I ended up parking across the street at The Home Depot. The Cheddar's and Chick-Fil-A's parking lot were full, no vacancy. The line of cars were 4 lanes wide, with a traffic cop directing which cars would be next in the line. Later, I remembered there was a fifth lane into the lot. That line, when I left the store, went down the road quite a way.

 It didn't take me long to get inside the store, about 5 minutes. I got near the front of the line and then stopped. The store had to catch up with the rush of orders they had. Unfortunately, some orders were lost and had to be remade. Those customers had been there for an hour.