Bio:
Glenn Melancon lives in Sherman, Texas with his wife Jackie and two boys Chris and Alex. Glenn's a history professor and Jackie's a school counselor. He was the Democratic Candidate for Congress in Texas 4th District (2006 & 2008).
Now, I can understand why Perry is avoiding this question, but why are our democratic candidates?
"Texas is headed for a lot of financial pain come 2012 and 2013.
This is one of the chief issues that all candidates ought to be discussing. Our state's budget is looking as unsustainable as the federal one - how will they fix that?"
Memorial Day always makes me think of my dad-Yves "Buster" Melancon. He served for twenty-seven years in the United States Army and went to Vietnam twice. As a Combat Engineer, Dad wasn't directly engaged in the fighting, but he did travel throughout the war zone. I always wonder how my life would have been different if Dad had never come home.
I was lucky. Thousands of sons and daughters lost their parents to the war in Vietnam. Once, when I was an adult, and after he had retired, I asked my dad to tell me about his experiences. He simply said, "all I know is that a lot of good brothers died for no reason," and then he started to cry. I never heard the rest of the story.
Now, I'm a dad and my son-Christopher Yves-Paul Melancon-is joining the United States Army. He plans on being a Combat Engineer. I wish my dad were still alive. He would be proud.
Millions of men and woman-like my dad and my son-have sacrificed themselves to serve and protect you and me. Do we do enough to protect them? Do we do enough to prevent "a lot of good brothers" from dying "for no reason"? I'm convinced our new President understands that he has their lives in his hands.
Clever politicians have turned socialism into a frightening ghost. It has replaced terrorism as the catchall phrase. Should we get our pitch forks and kill this really scary monster? Maybe, but be careful what you kill. You might just kill a friend.
Facing falling poll numbers, the Republican political elites are downplaying their anti-gay and anti-abortion rhetoric. Political consultants had told them to use these "wedge issues" to divide America and win elections. More and more voters, however, want to know what their leaders stand for, not what they oppose. For the first time in thirty years we have an opportunity for real pro-family policies.
Washington politicians and lobbyists are already lining up for a Supreme Court confirmation fight. The buzz words are flying fast. Their jargon is meant to rally activists for or against any nominee. As citizens, however, we need to take a step back and look at the issues more closely. Who is pushing for "big government"? Who wants less?
Conservatives will make the abortion debate at the center of the confirmation process. How much control should politicians have over a pregnant woman? The 1973 Supreme Court Case Roe v. Wade limited state and federal control. Ever since then, conservatives have been fighting to reinstitute a larger role for government.
Humans love short cuts. Americans in particular have developed a culture based on instant gratification. There is, however, a price to pay for cutting corners. As my momma used to tell me, lazy people work the hardest. Our national security agencies are learning this lesson the hard way. It takes good old fashion hard work to keep America safe.
Our security requires good intelligence. The very word "intelligence" should give us a clue that short cuts will not work. Thinking may be natural, but it takes practice and effort. The mind is like every other muscle; it needs proper exercise and diet. Feeding a well-trained mind junk information produces bad results. Our Intelligence services need to break their addiction to junk information and start exercising more.
My oldest son will enter the US Army in June. In all likelihood he will go overseas with thousands of our brave men and women. If captured by the enemy, do I want him water boarded? Do I want his captors to strip him naked, to throw freezing water on him, to slap his face or to slam him repeatedly against a wall?
When I think about torture, I'm reminded of the story told in almost every Roman Catholic Church. Hanging on the walls are the Stations of the Cross. They tell how the Romans tortured and then murdered Jesus.
Who would Jesus torture? No one. Torture is wrong. It clearly violates the Golden Rule: "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets" (Matthew 7:12).
STOP THE PRESSES!!! Republicans politicians are angry! Again? Why? President Obama and the Democrats cut taxes for most Texas families, and the Republican are . . . angry? Where is the news here? No matter what Democrats actually do, Republican politicians will be angry. Should the rest of us be angry, too?
Our founding fathers knew that concentrated power hurts society. They wrote a constitution that divided political power into three branches. This system has served us well for over two hundred years, protecting us from tyranny. The founders didn't foresee today's vast concentration of economic power and the destruction it could bring. We, however, can. We should have known the danger it poses to us all.
Time and time again Ralph Hall tells voters that American soldiers will have to "fight a war and take some energy away from someone." Does this represent your values? It doesn't represent mine. I believe it's time to stop talking about stealing and to start investing in America.
My campaign has produced a short video using Hall's own words to expose his values. Please circulate it to your family and friends.
We have twelve days left to spread the word and fight for change in Texas. Donate today and help put this commercial on the air: https://secure.actblue.com/con...
