The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
Greetings ta ever one in western Illinois and all readers of "The Quill".
I'm a hope'n ever one is adjust'n ta the thought of cold weather and winter is near. Last week gave us a dose of cold weather ta remind us to have our winter clothing handy.
Thanksgiving Upon Us
With the Thanksgiving holiday upon us, we indeed have a lot ta be thankful fer. As we zip thru this holiday it seems Christmas comes along quicker every year. Both holidays are important ta Christians fer more than just good food and gifts. We should never forget why those holidays came into be'n.
With the election mostly over, except fer some contested results in some states, maybe it's time fer some thoughts on our "Electoral College".
Thoughts on Electoral College
Save the electoral college! Beware the aggressive move by the left to sign up states one at time to get rid of the electoral. 10 liberal states have already signed on for getting rid of the electoral process and a lot of their efforts are under the radar.
It won't be long until they are in the southwest working to get more states to sign on to the National Popular Vote Movement. We need to be aware of their intentions and stop them when and where we can.
Why we must not eliminate the Electoral College.
In their infinite wisdom, the United States' Founders created the Electoral College to ensure the STATES were fairly represented. Why should one or two densely populated areas speak for the whole of the nation?
The following list of statistics explains why the Electoral College makes sense.
There are 3,141 counties in the United States. Trump won 3,084 of them. Clinton won 57. There are 62 counties in New York State. Trump won 46 of them. Clinton won 16. Clinton won the popular vote by approx. 1.5 million votes. In the 5 counties that encompass NYC, (Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Richmond & Queens) Clinton received well over 2 million more votes than Trump.
(Clinton only won 4 of these counties; Trump won Richmond) Therefore these 5 counties alone, more than accounted for Clinton winning the popular vote of the entire country. These 5 counties comprise 319 square miles.
The United States is comprised of 3,797,000 square miles. When you have a country that encompasses almost 4 million square miles of territory, it would be ludicrous to even suggest that the vote of those who inhabit a mere 319 square miles should dictate the outcome of a national election. Large, densely populated Democrat cities (NYC, Chicago, LA, etc.) DO NOT and SHOULD NOT speak for the rest of our country! Just look at the MESS Chicago has made of the state of Illinois!
And...it's been verified and well documented that those aforementioned 319 square miles are where the majority of our nation's problems foment.
History Lesson On Social Security
Now fer a history lesson on yer Social Security card:
History Lesson on Your Social Security Card
Just in case some of you didn't know this. It's easy to check out, if you don't believe it. We need a little history lesson on what's what and it doesn't matter whether you are Democrat or Republican. Facts are Facts.
Social Security Cards up until the 1980s expressly stated the number and card were not to be used for identification purposes. Since nearly everyone in the United States now has a number, it became convenient to use it anyway and the message, NOT FOR IDENTIFICATION, was removed.
Franklin Roosevelt, a Democrat, introduced the Social Security (FICA) Program. He promised:
1.) That participation in the Program would be Completely voluntary.
No longer Voluntary
2.) That the participants would only have to pay 1% of the first $1,400 of their annual Incomes into the Program.
Now 7.65% on the first $90,000
3.) That the money the participants elected to put into the Program would be deductible from their income for tax purposes each year.
No longer tax deductible
4.) That the money the participants put into the independent "Trust Fund' rather than into the general operating fund, and therefore, would only be used to fund the Social Security Retirement Program, and no other Government program, and,
Under Johnson the money was moved to The General Fund and Spent
5.) That the annuity payments to the retiree's would never be taxed as income.
Under Clinton & Gore
Up to 85% of your Social Security can be Taxed
Since many of us have paid into FICA for years and are now receiving a Social Security check every month-and then finding that we are getting taxed on 85% of the money we paid to the Federal government to "put away'-you may be interested in the following:
Q: Which Political Party took Social Security from the independent "Trust Fund' and put in into the general fund so that Congress could spend it?
A: It was Lyndon Johnson and the democratically controlled House and Senate.
Q: Which Political Party eliminated the income tax deduction for Social Security (FICA) withholding?
A: The Democratic Party
Q: Which Political Party started taxing Social Security annuities?
A: The Democratic Party, with Al Gore casting the "tie-breaking' deciding vote as President of the Senate, while he was Vice President of the US
Q: Which Political Party decided to start giving annuity payments to immigrants?
A: That's right!
Jimmy Carter and the Democratic Party. Immigrants moved into this country, and at age 65, began to receive Social Security payments! The Democratic Party gave these payments to them, even though they never paid a dime into it!
Then, after violating the original contract (FICA), the Democrats turn around and tell you that the Republicans want to take your Social Security away!
And the worst part about it is uninformed citizens believe it!
Some Humor
And now fer a little humor
Boswell D. Rabbitsmith is a famous erudite scientist who once said: "I woke up one morning, and all of my stuff had been stolen and replaced by exact duplicates." His mind sees things differently than most of us do, to our amazement and amusement. Here are some of his gems: (He also makes his living as a comedian by the name of Steve Wright...)
1. -I'd kill for a Nobel Peace Prize.
2. -Borrow money from pessimists - they don't expect it back.
3. -Half the people you know are below average.
4. -99% of lawyers give the rest a bad name.
5. -82.7% of all statistics are made up on the spot.
6. -A conscience is what hurts when all your other parts feel so good.
7. -A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.
8. -If you want the rainbow, you got to put up with the rain.
9. -All those who believe in psycho kinesis, raise my hand.
10. -The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
11. -I almost had a psychic girlfriend, but she left me before we met.
12. -OK, so what's the speed of dark?
13 -How can you tell when you're out of invisible ink?
14. -If everything seems to be going well, you have obviously overlooked something.
15. -Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.
16. -When everything seems to be coming your way, maybe you're in the wrong lane.
17. -Ambition is a poor excuse for not being smart enough to be lazy.
18. -Hard work pays off in the future, laziness pays off now.
19. -I intend to live forever...so far, so good.
20. -If Barbie is so popular, why do you have to buy her friends?
21. -Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.
22. -What happens if you get scared half to death...twice?
23 - My mechanic told me, "I couldn't repair your brakes, so I made your horn louder."
24. -Why do psychics have to ask you for your name?
25. -If at first you don't succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried.
26. -A conclusion is the place where you got tired of thinking
27. -Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.
28. -The hardness of the butter is proportional to the softness of the bread
29. -To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research.
30. -The sooner you fall behind, the more time you'll have to catch up.
32. -Everyone has a photographic memory; some just don't have film
33. -If your car could travel at the speed of light, would your headlight work?
There ya have it then, some light heartedness ta end this column on. Enjoy yer family and friends this Thanksgiving holiday. Remember, you're not rich until ya have something money can't buy!
See ya in the church of yer choice this week.
Remember, wherever ya are, whatever ya be do'n "BE A GOOD ONE!'
Keep on Smile'n
Catch ya later
BARNYARD BRUKE