Enjoy this rollercoaster ride depicting the average price of homes in the US in today's dollars starting with 1890.

 

 

To simply see the graph, click here

So, what do we think should be happening with housing prices today?

Our good friends at the Center for Freedom and Prosperity review the Obama stimulus plan and share why it probably spells more bad news for our economy than a nirvana of hope to recovery.

This installment is 7:16 minutes

Obama's So-Called Stimulus: Good For Government, Bad For the Economy

 

As you can see, simply increasing government spending is never the answer. More often than not, increases in government spending are ripe with more waste, less accountability and efficiency, more dependency on government and less freedom for you and I.

Hopefully, you can apply some common sense to all of this and come down on the correct side of this issue. The bottom line is, the American economy would most likely be better off without ANY stimulus bill versus the one currently being promoted by Obama, putting a positive spin on the so-called "Do-Nothing Congress". I propose we give everyone in Congress a $10,000 stimulus bonus to go home for a month and do nothing. Should have a better effect on the economy.

 

 

Ed Feulner’s presentation at the Minneapolis event was so good, I really wish you could all hear it.  So, here are more words of vision from the President of the finest public policy think-tank in the country, The Heritage Foundation.

And if you have not read the opening of this speech, please go back and start there.

Our organizational goals are not just similar to those outlined below, but our mission is to help organizations like this accomplish their goals as well.

 

 

“Heritage will use these ten initiatives to build nationwide momentum to achieve policy outcomes that will restore the foundational principles that make America the greatest nation on earth. 

As I read through the list, you’ll see just how comprehensive Leadership for America is – how it identifies and addresses those aspects of our national life where we most need to rediscover and revive our most basic principles.

The Ten Transformational Initiatives are:

1. First Principles: We will revive a broad understanding and respect for the Constitutional principles – the first principles – that form the core of our freedoms.

2. American Leadership: We must advance American leadership and freedom in the world.

3. Education: We will provide future generations with the world’s finest educational system.

4. Energy and Environment: We must achieve energy security to strengthen our freedom.

5. Entitlements: We will replace the culture of entitlement with one of mutual  responsibility. Many of you heard about this initiative at the May meeting of the President’s Club and earlier this evening.

6. Entrepreneurship: We must unshackle American entrepreneurs by making the United States the most economically free country in the world.

7. Family and Religion: We will cultivate an environment in which the permanent institutions of family and religion can flourish.

8. Health care: We must give every American freedom of choice in health care.

9. Protect America: We will Protect America — and Americans — from freedom’s enemies.

10. Rule of Law: Return the judiciary to its constitutional role.

What will America look like as we advance these goals?

We will increasingly see:

· An America where freedom, opportunity, prosperity, and civil society flourish;

· An America where people, not governments, are empowered;

· An America where hard work is rewarded by prosperity, not ravaged by taxes;

· An America whose citizens are secure, protected from the enemies of freedom;

· An America where the single most important institution is the family;

· An America where religious liberty is once again respected and protected in the public square;

· An America whose borders are secure and whose people are united; and

· An America whose educational system is once again the world standard.

Right now we stand a long way from all those goals. Most Americans now think this country is headed in the wrong direction and that is largely because many of the political institutions that they have entrusted with leadership – Congress in particular – have defaulted on their responsibilities.

Fixing what is wrong – and what is perceived to be wrong – requires leadership, resolve, and major policy changes based on conservative values – American values. Our campaign will teach – again – the principles of the Founding Fathers to the American people. And Heritage is well equipped to discover realistic, workable solutions to America’s vexing challenges.

Based on our track record in policy work, many rank us at the top of our field – an organization that excels at turning policy ideas into action…

We will continue to be the source of reason and conscience for sensible policy alternatives.  Leadership for America will remind all Americans and our elected officials that when you govern according to conservative principles our nation will flourish.

We’ve embarked on a multimillion dollar national radio campaign called “What Would Reagan Do?” on the Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham radio shows. I’m sure many of you have heard those “spots,” and we invite those of you who haven’t to learn more at Heritage.org.   “What would Reagan Do?” teaches listeners about President Reagan’s core beliefs: low taxes, a strong national defense, and a return to first principles…

One thing is clear: Americans are hungry to learn about conservative principles.

Therefore, another aspect of our Leadership for America Campaign is our Targeted Education Approach. With it, we will seek to directly educate constituents in targeted congressional districts and regions around the country. Only by engaging, educating, and mobilizing American citizens can we hope to be successful in building a better, stronger, freer America.

Our Community Committees seek local leaders who can be Heritage ambassadors across the country and introduce Heritage to more Americans.  All of this leads to our goal of having one million Heritage members by the end of Leadership for America.

Think about it, if every elected official hears from committed, active, and motivated Heritage members in their district, it will be impossible for them to ignore our conservative message. They need to continually hear from Heritage at home as well as in Washington.

And we’re well on our way. From just over 200,000 members last year, I’m very pleased to announce that to date we’ve grown to 360,000 Heritage members. With one million members, everyone will have a base of energetic, vocal conservatives to work with locally.

In closing, I want to emphasize the importance of accepting responsibility and of finding the courage to follow through. The greatest blessing we can claim as Americans is the legacy of freedom left to us by the Founding Fathers.

But we have to claim it.

Our freedoms don’t live in history; They constitute a job that is forever in the present and future tense. If we expect to keep our freedoms, we can’t outsource the job to Washington and expect to see it done. We must take responsibility and do it ourselves.

Without a Heritage, every generation starts over.

And we can do it.

Now it is time for action. I invite you – I encourage you – to join us. The Heritage Foundation – your Heritage Foundation – will lead in this effort. Each and every one of you will play an integral role to ensure the campaign is successful. We need you, and millions of Americans like you, to commit to this cause.

We need your support, your loyalty to principle, your love of country, your entrepreneurial spirit, and your commitment to a vision of what America can be and should be, and what – with our united effort – America once again will be.

I urge you to make a commitment. Make it personal. Resolve to do your part in this crusade. Give your whole mind and your whole heart to the noble task of restoring authentic Leadership for America.

If we do this together, then God willing, we will succeed.

Thank you.”

Ed Feulner, President, Heritage Foundation

 

Well, I’d love to take credit for these inspiring words, but Mr. Feulner has really put together a strong vision and game plan for taking back the country.  I wholeheartedly support the efforts of the Heritage Foundation, am a supporting member and over the years will be encouraging each and every one of you to support this organization as well.

While Integrity Matters and our members share many of the same goals and game plan as outlined here in this Heritage Foundation presentation, we feel our program provides distinct advantages over everyone else that will allow us to grow much faster, much stronger and be more effective.

But make no mistake about it, our resolve and commitment to accomplish the very same mission by working with organizations like The Heritage Foundation side by side to strengthen their effectiveness is ultimately what will make all of us and our country, more successful.

I want to thank Mr. Feulner for his vision and for inspiring individuals like myself to dedicate our efforts to achieving it.

Recently, I had a chance to hear Heritage Foundation President, Edwin J. Feulner, speak at a local event.  His words really embodied what most Americans realize is happening to our country.  Here at Integrity Matters, as well as several other organizations including the Heritage Foundation, we are dedicated to this very cause of helping each and every one of you become an agent of change with an effective voice.

Enjoy these remarks from Mr. Feulner and I hope you join us in our shared mission.

 

“In many important respects, the America we live in today isn’t the one the Founding Fathers established in 1789. It isn’t even the America of the 1950s.

We’ve seen vital institutions of civil society being eroded – the family breaking down, public schools turned into unionized bureaucracies, religion banned from the public square.

We’ve seen our national security threatened by declining respect for America as a world leader. We’ve seen entitlement programs and burdensome regulations proliferate to the point that they now threaten our economic prosperity.

Perhaps worst of all, in the face of all these challenges and threats, we have seen some of our elected representatives abandon their responsibility to lead.

In doing so, they have earned the lowest level of public trust in our nation’s history.

Americans are concerned about these problems not just for themselves but for their children and their grandchildren.

And we are starting to realize that the necessary changes cannot all come from Washington but that a national, grassroots rebirth needs to occur. It is time for Americans to stop watching the erosion of our most fundamental values, and begin taking serious and united action to restore them.

To guide our actions, we need to rediscover the principles that sustain our irreplaceable freedoms.  We need to trace the causes and identify exactly where our traditional American values are being compromised. And, we need to commit ourselves to a longterm, clearheaded program to reclaim those values and bring our nation back on course.”

 

Mr. Feulner, speaking on behalf of The Heritage Foundation, really sounds like that smart voice inside my head attempting to put our mission to words that make sense.  Frankly, I couldn’t have said it any better myself.  Integrity Matters will be embarking on exactly this kind of journey and I hope you will join us.

You can sign up for our free educational newsletter at TheAmerica.US

If you want to learn more about Integrity Matters or become a member, please ask the person who directed you to this post, as our membership is By Invitation Only.

Mr. Feulner’s speech only gets better and continues in Part 2. 

Something big is happening.  As I look around, I see the most incredible influx of grassroots activity taking place today, right now, as you read this.  The number of conservative organizations are growing exponentially to fulfill the increasing demand for ideas, education and action.  History has always had fringes of passion on all sides of the political spectrum, but real change, sweeping upheavals of existing policy have come about by a revolt of the masses.  These revolts tend to come to fruition by the rising polarity between the ideology bought into by two opposing views.  As they both grow more powerful, it culminates with a climax of war, to settle once and for all, who will win the will of ideas.   Think the American Revolution, the civil war or the civil rights movement.

Today, there are becoming fewer and fewer complacent citizens, willing to stand by and let the government conduct business as usual.  The left is screaming for socialism and the right is screaming for getting back to our Founding Father’s first principles of freedom and liberty.

The polarity between these ideologies has never been greater than they are today and the revolution is beginning.  Don’t stand aside and be a spectator, willing to accept a fate not of your choosing.  Join us, and be an important part of the revolution, the war, the solution.  If we don’t stand up to the socialist agenda of the left today, the sweeping change you will unknowingly accept will be the “new deal” and the “great society”  multiplied  instead of the American ideals of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Here at Integrity Matters, we are assembling the army, who will stand up and fight with our allies like Newt Gingrich of American Solutions, Ron Paul with his Campaign For Liberty, Ed Feulner of the Heritage Foundation and the growing number of allies that will join hands as we achieve victory.

This sense of the coming revolution is being felt by many, including someone we will stand beside and fight with, Chuck Norris.  He senses the very same movement I do.  So much so, I included the text from his commentary on humanevents.com titled “The Coming Revolution”.

 

I believe a revolution is coming to America. Just as Hurricane Ike slammed into my home state of Texas, I am more and more convinced as every year passes that a needed voter revolution is brewing and will arrive imminently at America's shores and ballot boxes.

The birth pains for this voter revolution can be seen through the highs and lows of current political polarities. I believe it was felt through the surge of the constitutional community supporting Rep. Ron Paul. I believe it was felt in evangelicals' and conservatives' frustration with our present presidential picks. I believe it is felt in the heightened responses to John McCain's "Hail Mary throw" for vice president in Sarah Palin. And I believe it is felt in Americans' virtually unanimous disapproval rating (roughly 91 percent) for Congress.

Of course, America has some good congressmen, such as Ron Paul. But the fact is those good politicians are few and far between. The majority of them need to be replaced, and the rest of them need our help to do it.

A voter revolution would usher in politicians who make sweeping and radical changes, including disposing of the unconstitutional Internal Revenue Service and replacing it with a "fair tax." These are leaders who genuinely commit to the America established by our Founders, drastically cut government waste, immediately stop pork-barrel spending, reject political perks and lobbyists, quit borrowing from other nations (such as China), cease imperialism and nation building, lessen the flow of so much government aid overseas, and bring back production and pride in American commerce, etc.

The way I see it, there are three major common-sense steps toward a voter revolution:

First, examine your representatives from the top down, and ask yourself: Do they represent the people? Do they stand by the Constitution? Do they reduce big government, taxes and our deficit? Are they working to protect our borders and sovereignty? Will they stand up to governmental status quo and gridlock? Do they have the type of character that can resist the temptations of political power and special interest groups?

Second, if your answer is "no" to any of the above, get them out of office. Petition their dismissal; publicize their political problems; and muster community consent in order to vote others in. Call them by name on blogs, and explain to people why they should be ousted; then do it. No more talk. Stay the course, no matter how long it takes.

Third, fight to vote in solid, reputable, law-abiding, Constitution-honoring representatives. Half our problem today is that we have been duped to vote into office individuals who have no integrity. A politician's integrity must precede our interests because if leaders are above reproach, then they are more likely to do what they've promised. And if you can't find a more upstanding citizen than you are, then consider running for public office. It's time to get out of the bleachers and onto the battlefield.

You know the words of the British orator Edmund Burke, "Evil flourishes when good men do nothing." Well, evil has flourished for too long. It's time for the good people to rise up in another voter revolution. Don't be like the 90,000 people who ignored the evacuation orders as Hurricane Ike approached. Don't just sit back and hope it turns out OK. Get involved. Start in your community. Fight for your country and state. And together, we can reawaken our country.

It's time we all revive the revolutionary spirit of America's Founders and reinvigorate their legacy. I've experienced a renewed sense of appreciation and commitment to them, and in my new book, "Black Belt Patriotism," I talk about how a spark of their passion can turn into a raging cultural fire:

"It doesn't take many people to foster a revolution. Jesus did it with twelve disciples. George Washington did it with his few suffering troops at Valley Forge. And we can do it today. We can set a new direction for America with people like you and me, who through our efforts in our communities and at the ballot box and in our personal lives can make this country everything it should be, everything our nation's Founders wanted it to be. America has fallen asleep at the wheel and it's time for her to wake up before it's too late. It's up to us; and this book is my way of showing where we can start."

I heard once that it only took 2 percent of our population to create our nation and that it still would take only 2 percent to change it today. If you don't like what you see in America, then join me by being a part of the new 2 percent. If you're with me, then you know the road ahead will not be easy and the war will not be won easily, but the rewards (I promise you) will be ultimately glorious.

Reposted from Human Events:  http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=28564

You are Integrity Matters.  We are the culmination of you, those you connect to this cause and the millions of others like you that will join because of you.  We are the passive many that are finally willing to assemble, coordinate and fight along side heroes like Chuck Norris.  I welcome you.  Let the revolution begin.