Tag: quantum mechanics

Communist Infiltration of the Catholic Church: Faith and religion are not conducive to the moral value of a capitalist culture

One of the problems I have with religion is the basic premise of it, which is rooted in “faith.” The quandary of populism is to say that a person of “faith” is the same as assuming that the person is a “good” human being such as, “he’s a man of faith,” which automatically congers up thoughts of a value system rooted in religious belief so he would therefore be assumed to be a good person. Yet, statements like that are idiotic and are clearly false. Faith is a stupid word because it implies that there isn’t thought given to an action. Faith is lazy; it says that a person has surrendered thought to fate without doing the work of inputting intelligence to the conditions of our times. It is not enough to have “faith” in an afterlife when many decisions made every day must be considered with thoughtful input to maintain the values associated with goodness.

Religion therefore becomes tricky to the capitalist government reformer because government often grows most when it appeals to people’s faith. Once a government official or even a branch of government can appeal to the “faith” of the people in their ranks, trouble begins. This is particularly troublesome in the United States where the people are free to think and do as they please until they get to church and are supposed to live by rules established not by a deity whom speaks to them on Sunday mornings, but the interpretations of that deity translated over thousands of years to mold behavior in the present. You can’t really be a free-thinker and self driven person Monday through Saturday, except to pray to a deity whom we’ve never met, then give Sunday to that same deity—and expect to be considered a rational human being. Notions of “faith” and “sacrifice” to that faith are just stupid. Any rational mind would think so.

Yet religion has benefits. It does introduce social values rooted in kindness. And that’s where things get really tricky, because there is value in religion which opens the door to the stupidity of blind faith. When Manning R Johnson testified before the House of Un-American Activities on the subversive activities of the Kremlin within the Catholic Church in 1953 he did so as a former member of the Communist Party. He wasn’t some pundit speculating, he was actually from the Communist Party in the United States and provided oral testimony to the facts of strategy being introduced at the time. Here is a bit of that testimony.

“Once the tactic of infiltration of religious organizations was set by the Kremlin … the Communists discovered that the destruction of religion could proceed much faster through infiltration of the (Catholic) Church by Communists operating within the Church itself. The Communist leadership in the United States realized that the infiltration tactic in this country would have to adapt itself to American conditions (Europe also had its cells) and the religious make-up peculiar to this country. In the earliest stages it was determined that with only small forces available to them, it would be necessary to concentrate Communist agents in the seminaries. The practical conclusion drawn by the Red leaders was that these institutions would make it possible for a small Communist minority to influence the ideology of future clergymen in the paths conducive to Communist purposes. This policy of infiltrating seminaries was successful beyond even our Communist expectations.”

http://patriotupdate.com/global-warming-and-communist-infiltration-of-the-church/

Anytime you have an organization that is collectivist in nature full of people who subject themselves to thoughtless “faith” you have an opportunity to mold those people into any shape a charismatic leader might desire. For the communists advancing their thoughts into the Christian church was easy as many thoughts of Jesus could easily be considered socialist in their nature. A religion reflecting the morality of capitalism has not yet been introduced effectively, and the communists knew that if they could infiltrate the Catholic Church, they could easily steer away people from capitalism to socialism as a military endeavor designed to change a nation without firing a single shot.

Fast forward to the present, an actual Pope from the Catholic Church is planning to address the American congress on September 24th to press them into saving planet earth with green policies. As anybody with intelligence knows, communism has changed its name from the harsh policies of the past to a New Age type of religion called the “green movement.” To accept global warming and other far left policies requires “faith” in “leaders” to do our thinking for us. This was always the plan for communists who changed their names to environmental conservationists. To spread communism they effectively sought to appeal to the weaknesses of the religious right and to push anti-capitalist thinking under the door of resistance by disguising itself as a religion based on faith. Once faith is used to make decisions; it becomes easy to apply it to everything. That Pope whom we’re supposed to accept that the Catholic Church put into power because of some divine smoke came from a chimney, is an actual socialist from Argentina who does not like or understand the capitalism of America. But millions of Americans will listen to the guy because they have faith in the Catholic Church and that the guy dressed in white is a “man of God.” See how the communist infiltration of the Catholic Church as described by Manning R. Johnson works.

Global warming is simply another name for communism. Environmentalists are thus indicated because they have faith in the deity Mother Earth and will make decisions against capitalism in favor of that New Age religion centered on the planet—just like some raw primitive out of a hunter and gatherer tribe. Yet the logic of a free thinking republic such as what America is supposed to be, would dictate that capitalism take mankind away from earth to the reaches of space to advance our culture away from Mother Earth, not deeper into its bosom. The old communists know that if they lose the appeal of sacrifice to invisible deities and thoughtless sentiment based on “faith” that their movement of collectivist infiltration will finally die—as it should have many years ago. So the Catholic Church put in place an activist Pope to hide socialist policies behind a white robe and expects to sell little “C” communism to a typically conservative country through their religion. For me, upon realizing this, I simply stepped away and said, “no thanks.” I stopped going to church because “faith” is not a governing principle in my life, and it shouldn’t be for anyone. It is good to believe in goodness, and to have trust in other people. But blind, lazy, faith is dangerous as it opens the mind to thoughtless action. And religion is filled with such thoughtless enterprise which is not conducive in any way to logic and observable decision-making. For freedom to work and capitalism to flourish, thought is needed—and that is not what the Catholic Church is selling to its congregations. And now dear reader, you know why.

Rich Hoffman

 CLIFFHANGER RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Listen to The Blaze Radio Network by CLICKING HERE.

China’s ‘The Art of War’: Motivations and strategies behind global economic collapse

The White House issued a number of remarkably stupid statements during the week of 8/24 2015 specifically in regard to the China devaluation of their currency and the reaction that global stock markets have had as a result. Dear reader, this has been illustrated for everyone for several years now; I have covered the topic extensively. The sheer stupidity of those within the United Nations created on the heels of World War II to ensure that war would never again occur on an international stage only traded the aggressions of mankind from guns to finance—which effectually is much more dangerous. War with guns are often isolated to the battlefields and involve the killing and maiming of those under the command structure of government armies. Financial wars involve everyone in the world and can be much more dangerous as a slow killing, life depraving enterprise.

Reading and understanding The Art of War from Sun Tzu is extremely important. If we had schools that worked correctly, it would be required reading for every 7th grader. Every member of the house and senate on Capital Hill should be profoundly familiar with the classic book on oriental strategy. West Point does teach The Art of War to their students, and there are some other classes provided with an emphasis in military might from higher education that instructs on the Sun Tzu military philosophy, but it is grossly evident that most of the world is oblivious to the thinking of oriental thought due to the lack of actions to prepare for the knowing insurrection.

The book is established by thirteen chapters and they are as follows.

  1. Detail Assessment and Planning (Chinese: 始計，始计) explores the five fundamental factors (the Way, seasons, terrain, leadership and management) and seven elements that determine the outcomes of military engagements. By thinking, assessing and comparing these points, a commander can calculate his chances of victory. Habitual deviation from these calculations will ensure failure via improper action. The text stresses that war is a very grave matter for the state and must not be commenced without due consideration.
  2. Waging War (Chinese: 作戰，作战) explains how to understand the economy of warfare and how success requires winning decisive engagements quickly. This section advises that successful military campaigns require limiting the cost of competition and conflict.
  3. Strategic Attack (Chinese: 謀攻，谋攻) defines the source of strength as unity, not size, and discusses the five factors that are needed to succeed in any war. In order of importance, these critical factors are: Attack, Strategy, Alliances, Army and Cities.
  4. Disposition of the Army (Chinese: 軍形，军形) explains the importance of defending existing positions until a commander is capable of advancing from those positions in safety. It teaches commanders the importance of recognizing strategic opportunities, and teaches not to create opportunities for the enemy.
  5. Forces (Chinese: 兵勢，兵势) explains the use of creativity and timing in building an army’s momentum.
  6. Weaknesses and Strengths (Chinese: 虛實，虚实) explains how an army’s opportunities come from the openings in the environment caused by the relative weakness of the enemy and how to respond to changes in the fluid battlefield over a given area.
  7. Military Maneuvers (Chinese: 軍爭，军争) explains the dangers of direct conflict and how to win those confrontations when they are forced upon the commander.
  8. Variations and Adaptability (Chinese: 九變，九变) focuses on the need for flexibility in an army’s responses. It explains how to respond to shifting circumstances successfully.
  9. Movement and Development of Troops (Chinese: 行軍，行军) describes the different situations in which an army finds itself as it moves through new enemy territories, and how to respond to these situations. Much of this section focuses on evaluating the intentions of others.
  10. Terrain (Chinese: 地形) looks at the three general areas of resistance (distance, dangers and barriers) and the six types of ground positions that arise from them. Each of these six field positions offers certain advantages and disadvantages.
  11. The Nine Battlegrounds (Chinese: 九地) describes the nine common situations (or stages) in a campaign, from scattering to deadly, and the specific focus that a commander will need in order to successfully navigate them.
  12. Attacking with Fire (Chinese: 火攻) explains the general use of weapons and the specific use of the environment as a weapon. This section examines the five targets for attack, the five types of environmental attack and the appropriate responses to such attacks.
  13. Intelligence and Espionage (Chinese: 用間，用间) focuses on the importance of developing good information sources, and specifies the five types of intelligence sources and how to best manage each of them.

Verses from the book occur in modern daily Chinese idioms and phrases, such as the last verse of Chapter 3:

故曰：知彼知己，百戰不殆；不知彼而知己，一勝一負；不知彼，不知己，每戰必殆。

So it is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you can win a hundred battles without a single loss.

If you only know yourself, but not your opponent, you may win or may lose. If you know neither yourself nor your enemy, you will always endanger yourself.

This has been more tersely interpreted and condensed into the Chinese modern proverb:

知己知彼，百戰不殆。 (Zhī jǐ zhī bǐ, bǎi zhàn bù dài.)

If you know both yourself and your enemy, you can win numerous (literally, “a hundred”) battles without jeopardy.

Common examples can also be found in English use, such as verse 18 in Chapter 1:

兵者，詭道也。故能而示之不能，用而示之不用，近而示之遠，遠而示之近

All warfare is based on deception. Hence, when we are able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must appear inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near.

This has been abbreviated to its most basic form and condensed into the English modern proverb:

All warfare is based on deception.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Art_of_War

In short, the failure of the United Nations has been to assume that all nations of the world, particularly communist countries, would give up their ability to deceive and open themselves to vulnerability to all for a global group hug, which will never happen. Not in a million years—not in ten million years of progressive philosophy. Every academic throughout the world who thought like Woodrow Wilson and his successor Franklin Roosevelt and believed in the ridiculous United Nations practice of global unification failed to understand the nature of those from the orient. The Art of War is their governing philosophy and in the case of China, they use communism to unite the flags of the world behind their centrally planned cause. That is why oriental countries are so prone to communist regimes—because at their heart is The Art of War. It is the most important book available in understanding the current crises in China.

China has been deceiving the United States openly for quite a long time and using a ruse of friendship to lull all capitalist nations to commit themselves into a vast amount of debt out of a mutual relationship of deceptive trust so that they can crush all resistance to them in the future. They are playing a global game inspired by The Art of War. So keep that in mind while the White House continues to pretend that relations with China are good and marching in a positive direction. China is poised to crush the United States through a devalued currency and a trade imbalance, and they don’t care if lots of innocent people are hurt in the process. We are talking about a communist country that openly kills babies when they turn out to be girls—because the state has designated a one child per family policy. China is looking to expand—they have an unnatural imbalance of males within their society and they look to The Art of War as a way to expand their society. And they are doing it right now.

This is not a warning, or a bit of political theater. It is a fact that anybody familiar with The Art of War would easily understand.

Rich Hoffman

 CLIFFHANGER RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Listen to The Blaze Radio Network by CLICKING HERE.

Why the Trump Bankruptcies Would Make him a Better President: The billionaires behind the federal government

One of the most common rebukes to the Trump potential presidency is that his companies have filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy several times, the Atlantic City Taj Mahal 1991, the Trump Plaza Hotel in 1992, Trump Hotels and casino Resorts in 2004, and Trump Entertainment Resorts in 2009.  The cause of those bankruptcies was due to over-leveraged assets which can happen when financing speculative endeavors, and on those he came up short.  Casinos are dangerous endeavors, because they are essentially parasitic business practices that rely on strong economies to consume expendable income.  If a society does not have expendable income, it won’t spend money on casinos—which has led to trouble in places like Atlantic City.   However, what I find very interesting about Trump is that he has still managed to build up a personal wealth of billions of dollars in a very traditional way which makes him for me even more of an Ayn Rand hero presidential candidate than virtually any other possible billionaire who could run for president.  To see to what extent he is qualified watch this interview with Judge Jeanine from Fox News.

For me the fact that Trump is a billionaire who is willing to identify with Tea Party politics makes him gold in my book.  He’s willing to put himself out there to break down a bad political system.  Because the real fight is not on Capitol Hill, or even American politics, it’s in the billionaires who work behind the scenes to advocate progressive endeavors that politicians are expected to dance to.  Nothing will change so long as George Soros is pouring his money into left leaning causes, or Bill Gates is trying to advance common core.  Gates has a net worth of $67 billion dollars.  Michael Bloomberg who is a bleeding heart leftist has $27 billion.  Mark Zuckerberg is worth $13.5 billion and is the golden boy for the millennials, and these are all people who are politically active.  Rupert Murdoch is worth $11.2 billion.  Charles Koch is worth $34 billion and his brother David is worth an equal amount—personally.  These are the people who are shaping American politics from the political right and left.  Trump during his recent speeches has stated that Carl Icahn wants to work in his presidential administration—Carl is worth $20 billion dollars.  In comparison, Donald Trump doesn’t even make the top 100.  But he is willing to stick it to the entire system, fund his own campaign free of all their input and turn the entire system completely on its head.  That is something I can get behind in a big way. It’s a unique once and a lifetime opportunity that may not come again.  Billionaires like to stay in the shadows.  They don’t do what Trump is doing, and this is a key strategic opportunity to advance our political system beyond the control of the two-party system in a way that Trump is leveraged to do.

Most of the billionaires listed have managed to get their wealth through stock investments—such as Gates, Soros and Zuckerberg.  If Trump had done what they had, he might be far wealthier than they have become, because the wealth is created by anticipated value of their products as opposed to a tangible asset.  Trump is an old-fashioned guy—he has largely stayed out of stocks and has built his wealth nearly entirely on actual assets, such as golf course, real-estate developments, beauty pageants, entertainment media, etc.  Trump actually owns things, and he has done it in a sole proprietor way as opposed to diversified investments managed from afar.  Trump has remained throughout his career remarkably hands on and to this day has respectable access to liquid cash and very little personal debt.  The Trump brand is actually worth more than his personal assets ranging around $3 billion dollars.  In a brilliant move by Trump and his organization he looks to be aiming to accomplish two things, increasing his personal brand as President of the United States—which will likely triple, perhaps quadruple that brand value, and he will be able to as an insider increase market forces which will increase his holdings with a healthy economy.  As president, Trump could exceed his personal wealth well beyond that of Bill Gates, which is likely the real motivation for his presidential run.  How better to leave his kids with a great company?  But that’s not a bad or selfish thing.  For Trump, he has remained extremely traditional as an investor which has left him vulnerable to market fluctuations, such as what he saw in the early 1990s, and again in 2008.  With the national debt at nearly $19 trillion Trump has the most to lose in a collapsed economy which is inevitable under the current market trajectory.  So for a healthy “A-type” personality, there is no better way to kill two birds with one stone than to do the job yourself.  And I believe that is what Trump is doing.

Then there are the other motivations.  A good negotiator will align their needs with those they are dealing with.  Trump may be the only person available who can fight against these billionaire investments while increasing his own wealth and still helping America find its way again.  I believe those intentions are 100% real and there is nothing wrong with trying to do all those things at the same time. If Trump wasn’t in the game than what would be the option?  A government ran by billionaire leftists, or a government-run by billionaire conservatives.  Both have shown that they aren’t completely authentic in their adherence to the American Constitution and are philosophically weak to the founding ideals of the United States.  Trump made a choice to maintain his personal integrity in spite of the risks associated so that he could own his assets personally—without the usual protections of being able to sell off anticipated value quickly on the stock exchange.  Physical property is much less liquid but Trump made a choice to deal with that in exchange for personal ownership because of ideological commitments that could easily translate to the core problem within the United States—the national debt.

The next president of the United States will have to tackle that $19 trillion-dollar debt, the bankruptcies of the Medicare system, Social Security and the tragic implication of Obamacare starting in 2016.  Much of that debt is in perceived value—anticipated liabilities based against devalued currencies and projected forecasts.  Strategically, Donald Trump is tackling the brand of America and trying to increase its perception globally, by declaring that we need to limit immigration, so to make American citizenship perpetually of an increased value  Once that is accepted, he will gain bargaining leverage with other countries as a president that will make them pay for tariffs that they wouldn’t accept under an open border policy, which is right now most advocated by George Soros—the billionaire most aggressive in advocating for the progressive destruction of America so that he can capitalize off the hedge funds generated off that destruction.  There isn’t another American presidential candidate except for Trump who can actually increase the value of the United States brand to off-set the penalties that will incur if the national debt climbs up over $20 trillion.  At that point bankruptcy is the only way out, and that would cause America to lose its sovereignty to other nations.

From what I see, Donald Trump is all in, his investments are real and his risk is high.  Unlike his fellow billionaires he can’t just have a massive sell-off.  He is taking a gamble as we speak; his companies are buying low hoping for a market turn-around.  Trump, being a patriot at heart—if you don’t believe it, read his books, has jumped all in with no turning back. There won’t be any bankruptcy to save his companies from complete collapse this time.  He’s doing the only thing he could do, he’s stepping down from the billionaire Mount Olympus to fix the situation himself.  His ego wants to be the richest man in America so he doesn’t have any issues with attacking his rival billionaires by out-maneuvering them.  But he wants to save his companies from an economic collapse so that his children will have something left when he’s no longer around.  And to do that he has to save America from that collapse—and the only way he can do that is by becoming president.  There isn’t anybody else who is in his position who can do it—because it is fellow billionaires who are actually running the government anyway.  Donald Trump is a traditional guy who believes in personal ownership almost to a fault, he is chained to the destruction of America with the rest of us.  But unlike the rest of us, Trump is a billionaire who can actually make a difference, and he’s all in to do it.  He’s come too far to turn back and he’s going to need our help.  I think he shares with us the knowledge that 2016 is a do or die moment.  He can either take the party system out of the hands of the billionaires from both the right and left for the good of the country.  Or we lose our country, he loses his wealthy status, and we all go down the drain together.  Donald Trump has a lot more in common with most of us than anybody has yet given him credit for.  And it really comes down to his personal belief in ownership—which he likely inherited from his father and older brother.  Thus he is now taking the biggest gamble of his life.  For the benefit of us all, I hope and trust that he knows what he’s doing.  Because I see his maneuver as the only strategic way out of a minefield of destruction set by the billionaires who really run the federal government.

Also consider this, Barack Obama will be far more destructive as an ex-president advocating socialism and returning to the political scene as a community activists.  He will become very wealthy as a public speaker and will be given a platform to really advance the global intentions of Socialist International within the United Nations.  There isn’t a Republican in the party presently except for celebrities like Clint Eastwood and Donald Trump who can steal away the potential air of a dangerous ex-president Obama in the news cycle.  Trump would have something new happening ever day as president forcing Clinton and Obama to struggle for attention—which would bring an end to their efforts.  If Donald Trump has learned anything over the years with all the hard knocks he’s endured, it’s how to survive this current time.  And for my money I will bet on a tangible asset—Donald Trump—a proven commodity in every way who is highly motivated—and leveraged—to be successful.  Trump is my guy—and like him—I’m all in.

Rich Hoffman

 CLIFFHANGER RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Listen to The Blaze Radio Network by CLICKING HERE.

Beating Enemies from the Inside Out: Handing the baton to Donald Trump

I know the difference between a wolf in sheep’s clothing with malicious intentions and a wolf who has decided that the sheep need protection from other wolves and has sided with them to further their species. Many think that the Donald Trump run for president is something of a Trojan horse into the Republican Party intended to derail conservatism. I can understand their skepticism. But as I remind people often—we all have our little gifts innate to our individuality and mine has always been the ability to see way over the horizon toward trends and dangers well before anybody else. I have been able to do that all my life, and it was within weeks of the Donald Trump run for president that I saw something very special happening in politics. Donald Trump is in a position to do something that I have been doing with this blog site for over five years every day, and that is address difficult issues directly on a gigantic global stage, and if he is successful, where he actually steps into the White House, I am confident at that time that I’ll be able to step away from the daily contributions to this site and do something else—because Trump is largely going to be able to take the baton to the next level.

My family came over for dinner on Friday night to watch the wonderful Donald Trump speech from Mobile, Alabama. Trump was able to put about 30,000 people—according to USA Today—into a local football stadium for a very enthusiastic rally promoting his candidacy. Trump may not get into the details or have the same defined value systems that I do, but I see on his face and hear in his words a guy who has lived his life well—epically in fact—and now wants to give something back as a man at the top of his game—the way the process should work. I’ve always said that the best among us should manage the money and affairs of our nation—and Trump represents a trend changing element. So I wanted my family to see history happening. They came over, my wife picked up some Chick-fil-A, and we watched about four hours of Trump coverage including the live broadcasts on Fox and CNN. It really was an amazing event.

I have read a lot of books over the years and many have been Trump’s. Books like The Art of the Deal, Think Big and Kick Ass, Never Give Up, Think Like a Champion, Why We Want You to be Rich, and The America We Deserve are highly motivational and were written by a guy with a very long track record committed to the power of positive thinking. He has achieved so much in his life that really President of the United States is the only social thing left for him to conquer which is what I believe his true motivation is. He has the gifts and the mentality, and he’s testing himself on the largest stage possible, and the result is something that like everything else he has done will greatly benefit a large number of people.

My oldest daughter who thinks very highly of me immediately noticed what I wanted her to see by coming over to watch the Trump speech. “He reminds me of you,” she said with some level of intensity which she said when Trump signed a copy of The Art of the Deal for a fan while he was in the middle of his speech. Trump’s approach to problems is very similar to mine and I had been thinking the same thing. My wife has been saying that the reason she likes Trump so much is again because he reminders her of me, which she has been declaring for the last couple of months. Trump is running for president in precisely the way I would if I were in a similar position. He stays up each day working his campaign longer and harder than any other candidate and is able to dominate his rivals with sheer charisma. He’s at a different stage of life than I am, but the heart is what they are talking about—the intentions behind his actions. Because of all those elements, I feel very confident I understand Donald Trump and what he’s up to.

Slowly, as the back of this train, where the rest of society is, catches up to the front—where Trump has been all his life—the true impact of this soon to be global phenomena will make itself known. What we were watching in Mobile, Alabama was unique in the world of politics—a perfect blend of entertainment and political philosophy colliding within contemporary static patterns. Even though politicians have for years used celebrity as a way to prop up their numbers as second-handers, Trump is able to turn that whole system on its head. It used to drive me crazy to watch Bill Clinton fly Air Force One around speaking venues—completely paid for by the tax payers—to raise money for Democrats. Landing into Mobile Trump applied the same trick with his Boeing 757, his own plane built by years of personal success. That plane can fly at 609 miles an hour and can travel 4,400 miles without stopping. The plane is a symbol of Trump’s power. I was watching him on Twitter leading up to the big speech in Alabama. He was in New York just a few hours before his speech, but was able to jump in his plane and fly out to a remote site—perform his speech—and be back to sleep in his own bed. No other candidate can do that because they are second-handers—and Trump knows it. He was able to circle the stadium in his plane a few times just to rally the crowd on the ground that he already has a personal airplane better than Air Force One as a private citizen. It was a psychologically imposing reminder of just who he is, and what he has the potential to do in America.

For this blog site I have loaned my personal reputation and image to the plight of solving hard problems and I do it because I know that if someone doesn’t do something, there won’t be much of a country left in a few years. I know many important people read it every day that is at the top of political discourse and it helps them navigate through a very complicated time. It costs me far more to write this blog than many might think—but I do it because someone has to say these things as bluntly as possible. Just a few years ago, Glenn Beck and I were very closely on the same page, but over time, and personal circumstances he has essentially taken the money from his success and turned inward leaving the fate of his life to God. The guy who was able to pack the Mall in Washington for a Restoring America tour essentially got knocked off the national stage and is now broadcasting out of a cave in Dallas. He moved from New York to seek friendlier people who wouldn’t harass him on the social scene when he was out with his family. That’s where he and I differ tremendously.

Years ago Darryl Parks from WLW radio asked me how I dealt with the kind of harassment within my community from all the things I said on the radio and within this blog. He assumed that everywhere I went I would be harassed—and he’d be correct. Only people know that if they confront me that there will be a fight of some kind. There are two ways that people advance conflict, directly and indirectly. Direct conflicts are where people actually try to pick a fight with you and physical violence is the result. That has happened, and I deal with that kind of thing accordingly. Obviously, my behavior has not changed and it will not change, because I know how to handle those circumstances. Indirect conflicts are the passive aggressive types where people smile to your face, but try to stick a knife in your back at the first opportunity. These are the most common attempts, and were what Darryl Parks was asking me about. I have said it long before I’ve heard Donald Trump say it, that nobody out thinks me. Lots of people have tried, but nobody outthinks or out lasts me. I make a point to always be the last person standing in whatever conflict is presented, which ironically is the best deterrent. Once word gets out, people try much less frequently. Due to my relatively young age, I still get takers every now and then who try—especially older people who think by their age and social status that they have some inherit right to win a strategic match-up by default. I respond to them by not only beating them, but in embarrassing them to their very core. When they make a move against me I fully intend to send them to bed each night with doubt strewn across their faces and impotence that no Viagra pill can fix. I always plan to break them down from the inside out. Physical violence is fine as a last resort, beating someone from the outside in—but for a cunning mind, a truly dominate alpha male, the best way to beat a competitor is from the inside out. You can see a beaten person from the way they hold their eyes in a simple gaze. Trump, better than anybody running for President understands exactly what I’m talking about—he applies it each day—and that has won my trust.

Since Trump began his campaign he has had death threats lashed against him by drug lords, he has challenged entire countries and their governments to end their corruption, taken on the entire media establishment, both political parties, said and done anything and everything he has wanted, and he has still been able to fill a rally on a Friday night in Mobile, Alabama a year and a half from a presidential election with enthusiastic supporters while advocating his economic prowess using his private airplane with the reminder that he’s willing to spend a billion dollars of his own money to have a lobby free candidate sitting in the White House. Sign me up. I understand the kind of fighter that he is and am confident that his brand would destroy a political establishment that I want to see eradicated from the American scene. I am 100% confident that a Donald Trump as president would usher in a decade unique in not only America, but in all of human history. The Reagan presidency would become a footnote of inadequacy, and Trump would be successful because he knows how to win from the inside out, and not just the outside in.

So we are witnessing history in the making, something that is truly unique. I know what Donald Trump is doing and why he’s doing it. I don’t have to sit down with him to see it, because it is obvious to me that his motivations are very similar to my own. But he is positioned to take it to a new level, and for that I would gladly support. He is offering the kind of President that I have been asking for, so I’m going to advocate on his behalf. What people say about him from the past are interpretations of their social positions regarding the wake of defeats handed to them by Trump. People who have been conquered still have to live with themselves even after embarrassments, so they justify their existence with snaky comments and behind the back undermining. For instance, even with all that I’ve said and done, why is it that people from my past don’t come forward to say, “hey, remember when we met in that back alley, and you lost, or I got the better of you on such and such date.” You know why dear reader—because it’s never happened, and it never will. When you are a winner, you know how to hold the high ground and make others tear themselves to shreds trying to get to you. And that is what Trump is doing in a presidential election before the primaries. It makes me very excited to see what he could actually do once he won the election. I get the feeling that America by then will be a very different place. And that’s not a bad thing. At that point the words on these pages become much less relevant as a new day would spring forth in America, and I would emphatically assist by passing the baton to someone with a larger platform to finish the job.

To understand a Trump presidency is to understand the effort that actually built his 757 airplane. He could make America into something better, and I want to put it in his artistic hands to perform the task. The metaphor of that power made its impact in Alabama before he ever landed, and that left the global media short of words—because for many of them it was the first time they had seen such a thing outside of their personal static patterns where the rich and famous relegate themselves to the plush towers of Abu Dhabi. Trump wants to fight, he wants to conquer, and he wants to do it on behalf of America for one last triumph of a life well lived. And that in and of itself is wonderfully unique. A wolf is running for president not because he wants to eat the sheep that flock within American politics, but because he wants to fight the other wolves who reside in the cracks of global endeavor, and he wants to prove to himself that he can beat them all. And in the wake of that effort, America will become great once again. I know all that because I know myself, and I understand the drive that resides deep inside a person born to be a winner.

Now, watch the above videos and learn all about Donald Trump and understand why I’m right once again.

Rich Hoffman

 CLIFFHANGER RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Listen to The Blaze Radio Network by CLICKING HERE.

The End of Hillary Clinton: Guilty beyond refute–its just a matter of time

I’m not writing this for my usual readers, who would expect approximately 1500 words of substantiation to validate whatever argument I’m putting forth. What I’m about to say they already know. Rather, this article is for those on the other side who plan to vote for Hillary Clinton. I have news for you since by your lifestyle choices; you probably don’t know what’s happening involving her right now. For those people I will make this a lot shorter so to hold your attention spans. I am of course speaking to the communist slugs, the Democratic socialists, the labor union supporters, the welfare recipients, the bloods and the crips, the community activists, the “he she” types, the criminals, the lazy, and the vile progressive. Your candidate is in deep trouble. Just watch her in this very revealing Vegas press conference.

She was of course making a campaign stop in Vegas trying to maintain her lead during a presidential election—which can also be seen below. But at this point because of the guilt implied in what she said in the press conference, her campaign just ended. There is no possibility to recover. The Democrats are now without a candidate. Bernie Sanders is an open socialist. Joe Biden is attached to the sinking ship of the Obama White House and is extremely gaffe prone and there isn’t another viable candidate. So there you have it. Welcome to reality.

I’m not going to rub it in anybody’s face. Like the cockroaches that most of you are, the light has been turned on and your first instinct is to flee to the cracks and hide. But there isn’t anywhere to shelter you from your own stupidity. Those days are—in effect—over. It will take a while to clean up the mess, but the progressive party is effectively over—and it starts with this press conference. Hillary has no defense and it is so painfully evident. She is guilty as guilty could possibly be of not only misleading a federal investigation by destroying evidence, but gross misconduct while holding a public office directly connected to two American presidencies. And there isn’t enough pot (marijuana) in the world to numb that reality.

I know this has been a lot of words for your tiny minds to contemplate; I have tried to be as brief as possible. But I just thought you’d want to know that you don’t have a candidate for the 2016 election. Have a nice day.

Rich Hoffman

 CLIFFHANGER RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Listen to The Blaze Radio Network by CLICKING HERE.

The Millennium Falcon is my Thing: Wonderful news from Disney’s D23 Expo

Stunning is all I have to say about the news out of Disney regarding Star Wars.  Everyone who reads here and knows me understands that I am a Star Wars fan.  They know that my primary love in life is that of mythology and the power of it.  That one of my great personal teachers was the maverick professor at Sarah Lawrence College—Joseph Campbell and that I spent many of my formative years associating with the Joseph Campbell Foundation of which George Lucas was one of the Board of Directors.  And I have said on many occasions that I think the new Star Wars films, and all the books and media that will follow will reshape our modern culture not only regionally, but globally. There is tremendous power in Star Wars and Disney’s marketing machine will only accentuate that in glorious ways that only capitalism can fully extract.  The news around the upcoming film The Force Awakens is exciting.  But that’s not all, a whole slate of new films following that one are upcoming.  All the mythology that the previous six Star Wars films have produced over the last 30 years will soon be eclipsed by the six new films in the pipeline produced over the next six years.  And supporting those will be all new novels, video games, commercial products but best of all a new Star Wars land at the Disney parks.  Click here to read some of my previous work on this topic.  I predicted this a long time ago in a galaxy not so far away. 

For me the biggest news of this century which has stirred in me a delight that is quite epic is the information that not only will Disney build a 14 acre Star Wars specific land in both the Anaheim location and Orlando location, but that a full-sized Millennium Falcon will be present.  That is a game changer in these films that I have been wanting to see my entire life.  And now I’m going to get to see it.   At the D23 Expo over this last weekend Bob Iger released the details and showed the concept art and that just did it for me.  I have been in love with the Millennium Falcon since I was very young and it may actually be stronger today than even when I was a kid because not only through the movies, but the many novels, I have spent a lot of time on that ship in my head—and I completely understand the world it traverses through.  I am very happy that Disney as a company has done precisely what I said they would do with the Star Wars acquisition when they first bought it in 2012 and at the heart of it they intend to keep the Millennium Falcon a central character to the entire saga.

Honestly if Jesus Christ came again to judge the living and the dead on judgment day and I had a chance to attend that or to go see the Millennium Falcon in real life, I would choose the Falcon.  I am pretty stoic when it comes to controlling my emotions.  I don’t get crazy about many things—especially sad things. But I do allow myself to feel elation over positive things, and I really don’t know how I will handle seeing a Millennium Falcon in real life—seriously.  When the place opens I may take a week of vacation just to reside in that land day after day soaking up everything—because I love the Star Wars mythology from top to bottom—and within that world I have a love of the Millennium Falcon that is central to that passion.  Still to this day, out of all the successes and experiences I’ve had—which are quite extraordinary, things I’ve won and achieved—one of the best memories I have ever had was seeing the real life model of the Millennium Falcon in the Smithsonian in 1997.  I really felt when I put my hands against the glass that I had died and gone to heaven.  It was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever put my eyes on.  Given that context I really don’t know how I’ll react to seeing a model of the Falcon in full-scale that I can walk up to and see close.

Han Solo is the modern embodiment of the classic western cowboy.  His quick draw pistol is famous within the Star Wars storyline and his super fast Millennium Falcon gives a tip of the hat to two film genres, the classic car hot rod and a gun fighting cowboy.  Those two things are just impossible not to like—and to top that off, the Falcon was a pirate ship within that galaxy—so I’m not the only one who finds the Millennium Falcon appealing.  I was amazed to see Harrison Ford on stage at D23, and that it was Han Solo who made the cut on the new poster for The Force Awakens.  There will be a new film about specifically Han Solo as a young 20 something that will be exciting, so there is a lot of news coming from Disney to be excited about for—particularly for Millennium Falcon fans.  I know how I feel about all this information, so I can’t help but think of the scientific implications of it.

As recently as last week I was thinking of a way to build a real Millennium Falcon as a real usable space vessel moving to and from earth to explore the reaches of space.  I really don’t think we are that far away, and one design with sentimental value is as good as any other.  The Falcon offers a lot of options for deep space travel particularly in its circular design.  A change of scenery is important when spending a lot of time in space, and the Falcon is cleverly designed for just such an experience.

Also announced at D23 was the new photo for Rogue One which showed Felicity Jones as the main actress standing among a group of daredevils and hackers about to steal the Death Star plans leading up to the original Star Wars film,  A New Hope.  As I looked at that I couldn’t help but wonder if she wasn’t playing Bria Tharen who was one of Han Solo’s girl friends from the Expanded Universe.  If she was her back story could easily be a part of the stand alone Han Solo film coming on May 25th 2018.  I’m already in line!  Likely being that young, Han Solo wouldn’t yet have the Millennium Falcon, but I’m sure it will make an appearance in that film as the ship owned by Lando Calrissian.   It is obvious that Disney, knowing the popularity of the vessel is finding ways to put it in most of the new Star Wars films in some support role or another.  There will also be a Boba Fett film and in that story I’m sure he will be chasing around a younger Han Solo in the Millennium Falcon—so there is a theme emerging that is quite justifiable in placing a full-sized Falcon in the center of the new Star Wars land at Disney.

Knowing the effect the Falcon has had on me I shudder to think of what effect it will have on a new generation who can actually walk up and touch it.  I got goose bumps the first time I saw new footage of the Falcon in a hangar on the Star Tours ride in Orlando.  Part of the ride flies off behind the popular vessel in a dog fight and I was blasted with excitement in just seeing it sit there.  For my birthday this year we went to Dave & Busters just so I could fly the Falcon in the video game there exclusive to the popular gaming destination.  But these are all images that take imagination to enjoy.  They are not something you can put your hands on and feel.  Disney is now taking that step and I am emphatically excited about it.  I think the influence it will have on science for years to come will be extraordinary.  These new films will open up the mythology in ways that nobody thought was possible before and the effect they will have on civilization will be extremely powerful.  Being able to reach out and touch it will just make it that much more influential as a mythic device.  So yes, there is a lot of good news floating around out there.  But for me, nothing is more exciting than the D23 news coming out of Disney.  I would pay $100,000 just to see an actual movie prop of the Falcon on set.  I would spend unknown amounts to see one all dressed up at Disney World.  The Millennium Falcon is my thing—and I share that with a lot of other enthusiasts. It was probably the best thing that Disney could have done with Star Wars—and they are just getting started.  I can’t wait to see what’s next!

Rich Hoffman

 CLIFFHANGER RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Listen to The Blaze Radio Network by CLICKING HERE.

A Nice Note from Frank R. Brownell III: Dreams from a honeymoon and strategies forward

I received a nice note from Frank R. Brownell III, shown below, which meant quite a lot to me.  He wanted to thank me for some of the writing I have contributed on behalf of his company, which of course have led to radio spots and other indirect support of his very fine company.  I loved Brownells as a young man when one of my very first jobs out of high school was a gunsmith, and I still love them as they are the best of their kind in the world regarding gunsmithing equipment.  Guns are the keys to American freedom protecting capitalism from the treachery of socialism.  Governments—all governments—are inclined toward socialism so we need guns to keep those back-of-the-train bureaucrats in their pin-headed offices, and off our backs.  Not from violence, but from the knowledge of equality that guns provide to individuals who are always prone to aggression from collective organizations and institutions of consensus.  The only reason that socialism has been such a slow boil in America hidden behind the changed names of the Democratic Party is because Americans have so many guns.  And the people who keep those guns working are gunsmiths, making them one of the most important fields of endeavor in a free society.Brownells

I have too many hobbies—entirely too many.  I would need about 3000 years to develop them all.  But out of them all, the one that I think is the most important is my love of guns.  I’m not a person who has a tremendous number of guns.  But having them, and being able to work on them is a value that to me is excessively valuable.  That is why I originally wanted to be a gunsmith more than any other profession.    When I was young and newly married, I was set to become a global adventurer—as a career.  My experience at that time could only take me satisfactorily to such a destination.  I had done just about everything and experienced so much before I even turned 18 that I was headed in that direction.  While honeymooning in Gatlinburg, Tennessee with my country club oriented new wife, we picked that destination because I wanted to show her how the other half of life lived.  That’s why we picked the blue-collar landscape of southeastern Tennessee to have our honeymoon instead of someplace like Hawaii.  I always enjoyed the finer things in life, but I grew up blue-collar, so I was always able to maintain that balance.  My wife was curious about that life, so we vacationed in a way that would show her those things while still living in the kind of luxury she was accustomed to.  I found a chalet for us, took her to the finest restaurants in Gatlinburg at the time, and we drove there in our BMW shortly after the wedding.  The view out our window was of the Smoky Mountains, it was very remote and spacious, and we had the whole place all to ourselves.  It made for a wonderful honeymoon in the fashion a young couple would expect to entertain themselves who are newly married.  She was comfortable and happy, thus she was open to the kind of places I liked to go—like leather shops, gun shops and knife stores.  This was all new to her, so we wanted to capture that moment in a bottle and I decided that I’d become a gunsmith to give her that kind of life 365 days a year 24 hours a day.

That was when I discovered for the first time Brownells.  They had their act together and walked that fine line between luxury and blue-collar sentiment seamlessly, which enabled me to bring a little Gatlinburg to our daily life which made my wife very happy.  Soon we were on a path unique to us and making a living that wasn’t as Champaign glass specific as what was expected of us.  She was raised to be a country club fashion model, and I was personally comfortable in tents, campfires, and luxury hotel accommodations anywhere on earth.  We were trying to do something different and that was to fulfill a new idea we came up with during our honeymoon that combined everything into a nice domestic life that we both wanted, but had no real examples to follow—leaving it largely to us to create from scratch.  Brownells made that dream a possibility that we clawed at for several years.   We started having kids and from there the pressure increased and our goals as a couple become much more difficult to achieve.  I took a step away from the gunsmithing because increased demands to have a more socially acceptable living, and the difficulties of being so young trying to do something that progressives were trying to destroy in the years leading up to Bill Clinton were ominous.  This made the dream we had seem so hard to reach which put a lot of pressure on us as a young couple.

I am a lot of things to a lot of people—but one thing that is completely consistent across the spectrum of thought is that I am extremely tenacious and I never forget anything.  It is likely the aspect of me that is most recognizable to other people.  Once I get my hooks in something, I never let it go until I get what I want or need out of it.  If I want to do something, I do it—hell or high water—nothing will stop me.  Nothing. That means I sometimes put things off for a few decades until I have the time or means to get back around to them, and that is what I did with gunsmithing.  I took some time to catch things up, deal with the encroachments of modernism seeking to impose itself on our married life, and keep the coals of gunsmithing warm in the back of my mind always with that vision of a life created in our imagination at Gatlinburg during our honeymoon alive no matter what was going on.

During our honeymoon we went to several leather shops and looked at boots, cowboy hats, and gun holsters and we wanted a lifestyle that incorporated all those elements.  For a country club girl, someone who was actually being groomed by the John Casablanca modeling agency to do photo shoots for Cosmopolitan in New York and whose parents were members of the very prestigious Becket Ridge Country Club at the time—this life of leather, lace and red, white and blue Americana complete with bullwhips was something very appealing.  It was a way out of the mundane conversation often conducted at power lunches—which are important for business, but often leave people short on intellectual stimulation.  So she was all in if I could provide for her, which was a lot of pressure on me—it was a lot to sign up for.  She literally had her pick of who she could marry, and there were plenty of up and coming lawyers, sons of business tycoons, and well-to-dos offering to sweep her away into a comfortable life continuing her country club expectations.  It takes a lot to sign up with a woman knowing there is a line from here to the moon of men wanting to sweep her up if you stumble even a little bit.  We determined to live a traditional life as a couple to seal the promises we made during our honeymoon—which included bullwhips, cowboy hats, and lots of firearms.

To understand that promise made in Gatlinburg, Tennessee so many years ago—the kind of America we committed ourselves to, is to understand what kind of company Brownells is.  They are technically modern, traditional as a business, creative—but place at the head of their business model a sincere appreciation of quality and integrity.  When you get something from Brownells it has a feel of quality to it, no matter what it is.  That is because of their value system, which is the kind of America my wife and I made a decision to defend—any way possible.

We are at a stage in our life where that tenacity has outlasted many of the oppositions presented and the restrictions upon us are breaking loose.  That’s why it’s no surprise to us that the first contact I made after that weight was lifted off me was back to Brownells.  Sure it took over twenty years, but who’s counting?  They represent the kind of America we fell in love with during a dreamy honeymoon.  Brownells is the best that our country offers as a free market option that protects the Second Amendment with gun maintenance while setting the industry standard.  As Cabela’s and Bass Pro expand their outdoor shopping empires—much to my liking—it is important to remember that Brownells did it first.  When the nation was reeling under progressive strife, Brownells held strong so that the rest of the country wouldn’t lose themselves to the encroaching progressivism that sought to infect the only free country left on planet earth.  Brownells did more than just preserve gun maintainence, it held down a family friendly business model that values good old-fashioned conduct which built the nation to begin with—and they have endured successfully in spite of the opposition against them over many, many years.

So it meant a lot to me to receive the nice note from Frank Brownell, III.  He didn’t have to send me a letter, and he certainly didn’t have to type it up and mail it personally to me.  He could have sent an email or a tweet.  But he didn’t, he sent a well thought out letter with a personalized signature because it mattered to him to reach out and maintain personal contact with people he values, which is at the heart of why they have been such a successful company.  They simply are the best in the business, and I’m so happy they are out there.  I’m not only getting back into doing some gunsmithing, but I’m starting an entirely new hobby that will require a lot of work with Brownells.  It is part of something I think is extremely important given what we know about the progressive attempts to attack the Second Amendment and the defense of freedom that personal firearm protection provides.  We need to re-sell freedom to the American people, and the best way to do that is with firearms—and I plan to capitalize on that for the sake of marketing, and sentiment.  My wife and I still have those original dreams, and we are not the kind of people who let dreams slip away.  And those dreams are more possible because of companies like Brownells.  They are what we are fighting for—good people, good ethics, and always striving to provide good products in a way that is specifically American.  They are the foundation of that dream, and I will always cherish them.

The feeling is mutual, Frank.  Keep up the good work, you guys are not alone.

Rich Hoffman

 CLIFFHANGER RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Listen to The Blaze Radio Network by CLICKING HERE.

The Silver Tee Kitchen and Craft Bar at the Elk Run Country Club: Great golf, great food, and wonderful history–open to the public

Since I’m a pretty controversial character, by choice, I am reluctant to stir the waters of conformity with my endorsements.  But there are some nice things going on in my community that are worth talking about in the face of a lot of political unrest in the world outside the borders of Liberty Township, Ohio—where I live.  One of the great things coming is the opening of the new Cabela’s in West Chester which is just across the street from the Liberty Township border at Liberty Center. I am excited for all the new developments and unusual dining options that often come with these new constructs.  However another fine little discovery that has emerged of late is the Silver Tee Kitchen and Craft Bar at the Elk Run Country Club at the western diagonal edge of Liberty Township that was quite a surprise—and worth a mention regarding quality.image

I live along the Elk Run golf course.  My wife and I have always loved the place; it is certainly a wonderful course, very scenic with a lot of risk & reward holes.  With it being in such close proximity to RT 4, yet having such a spectacular view of the Trenton valley, it’s a unique place.  It reminds me often of the fine golf courses in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, or the scenic establishments at Hilton Head Island.  Yet it’s right in Southern Ohio in the heart of Butler County and is to me a real treasure.  Additionally, it has sentimental value because it’s been there for a long time—back when Chuck Nuxhall was still playing as a pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds, The Elk’s Club was the place to be.  This was of course before the Becket Ridge Country Club came about—which is where my wife and I were married many years ago—back when that was one of the most premier establishments in Cincinnati as far as country clubs go.  The Elk’s Club in its heyday was open and thriving when LeSourdsville Lake just down the road was competing directly with Kings Island as two amusement parks of nearly the same quality.  I was a kid when all these things were happening, and I remember them—so there is a sentimental loyalty that I have for their preservation.

Other golf courses and country clubs offering the latest and greatest appeal to a much younger demographic is the Shaker Run course in Monroe, Wetherington in West Chester, and Four Bridges just down the road from the new Cabela’s—which represent the upper crust of social hierarchy.  These are great places after a hard day of work to take a few hours to live in absolute luxury—associate with people who are economically affluent—and step away from the world’s problems.  And yes, I put an emphasis on “economically affluent” because it matters.  People who make money tend to be smarter than people who don’t, and their company is more enjoyable.  They don’t laugh so much at fart jokes and they care about the quality of their golf equipment.  Affluence means generally that people have been productive, and I prefer the company of affluent people because of it.  But for a country club complete with a round of golf to work correctly not just for its resort qualities, it needs to be the kind of place you’d take business associates to conduct business—away from the office on ground that is elevated in its presentation.  It is much better to discuss hard topics on a golf course instead of a conference room, just because the energy surrounding such places promotes business association—which is extremely important to the furtherance of capitalism within America.  As much as people from outside of country clubs refute the country club culture—it is on golf courses and fine dinners where most of the best deals are made promoting economic growth.  It is a form of communication among productive people that is generally understood within business.

In Liberty Township with all the great golf surrounding the region, the newer more affluent golf courses get most of the attention. This has left Elk Run to mainly appeal to the silver haired crowd who remember when it was “the” place around town—back in the day. However, the course is still just as wonderful as it’s ever been.  It’s not surrounded by million dollar homes and has a few trailer parks near it, which hurts its appeal.  And there is a Tractor Supply right across the street which I think takes people away from the appeal of a golf course and the luxury that is expected.  But I like these colorful infusions of demographic mobility—I enjoy the dynamic quality of a car losing its muffler driving up RT 4 in front of the golf course while players haul around thousands of dollars worth of golf clubs, dressed well and conducting their lives responsibility.  I like the theater of life, and the Elk Run Country Club provides an oasis in the middle of this dynamism that is extraordinary.

The trouble with the club is not the course which is every bit as great as it was 50 years ago.  It’s the buildings, they are a bit dated reflecting the power and prestige of a generation that is currently old, but has seen its greatest generation leave for Heaven’s gates.  This is quite the opposite effect that you get at Wetherington, where the clubhouse is immaculate and modern, but the course itself is flat and featureless—relatively speaking.  Wetherington will impress business clients because of its reputation.  Elk Run has been a good memory but won’t impress with its clubhouse—which is a shame, because it’s really quite good, with a banquet area that overlooks the beauty of its marvelous view.  My first daughter was married in that banquet hall because of its beauty, and we will never forget it.  But with great golf and productive business meetings comes great food, and at the Elks, this is where they have struggled over the last decade.  Several restaurants have tried to make a go at the classic club house and failed leaving the country club appeal of the Elks missing an important ingredient.  At the Elks this is even more important, because they have a very nice kitchen that is oversized—built during a time when such things were important, so they can handle a lot of good food for a tremendous number of people.  The equipment and furnishings are dated lacking the luxurious appeal of modern décor, but everything back then was built to last, and it still does the job.  So the Elks have been missing a nice restaurant experience to go along with the golf.  No longer, a Jordanian gentleman came to the rescue and opened up the Silver Tee Kitchen and Craft Bar and it is quite good.  My wife and I recently visited it for the first time and came away extremely impressed.

My measuring stick for fine food is Jags in West Chester.  There are some great restaurants in downtown Cincinnati and in other cities, but I personally respect Jags as far as fine food.  I’ve never had a meal there that wasn’t great or the service enthusiastic, which you expect when paying the kind of money it costs to go to Jags.  Silver Tee Kitchen and Craft Bar is a legitimate substitute for Jags and it’s open to the public—you don’t have to be a member of the club to dine there either.  You can just pull up and park to get some fine food prepared by a staff that obviously cares a great deal about the food they put on the plate.  It was a dining experience that the chain establishments just can’t or don’t provide and it had an energy to it that was very enthusiastic.  The food was great, the service robust, worthy of a 25% tip, and the menu wasn’t so crowded that there were too many option, but just enough to cover nearly every pallet preference of most customers.  More importantly, it was a great family environment.  For families in Liberty Township, Fairfield, and Trenton– Silver Tee Kitchen and Craft Bar is the place to go for diner offering an experience worthy of a night out.  The food was fresh and certainly better than most customers could make for themselves in their own kitchens.

The good news for the Elks Club is that finally they have a restaurant worthy of the country club experience, which hopefully will attract a new generation.  I wouldn’t hesitate to take business associates there for a round of golf and dinner.   I mean the place literally has everything, a great driving range which is completely hidden from the outside world.  A 27 hole facility surrounded by rolling hills and large mature trees—not the kind that were planted 15 years ago like what is seen on the newer courses, and now it has a first class restaurant which deserves community support.  You could literally spend the day at the Elks Club in Liberty Township playing golf and associating with clients escaping from the pressures of the outside world in a way that just isn’t possible anywhere else.  And with that support, the Elks Club can modernize things a bit and get up to speed with some refurbishment.  Because what they have now is actually better than the new stuff offered with fresh paint and processed wood.  The Silver Tee Kitchen and Craft Bar captures that history with a respectful tip of the hat to a generation long gone, but one that laid the foundations for everything that came after.  The entire facility is family friendly and non pretentious, but that doesn’t affect its quality one bit.  Don’t feel intimidated to visit the Silver Tee Kitchen and Craft Bar by thinking that you have to be a member of the country club.  Just pull right in and park next to the giant Elk statue.  Then step inside to a restaurant owned by a guy who really cares about his food.  And enjoy an establishment rooted in history that has something unique to offer Liberty Township from a fairly remote location which is literally in the backyard of so many people.  The food at Silver Tee Kitchen and Craft Bar is good enough to compete with the kind of dining you get downtown—but you don’t have to travel 45 minutes south to get there.  All you have to do is just step out your back door and enjoy something that is truly special.

Rich Hoffman

 CLIFFHANGER RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Listen to The Blaze Radio Network by CLICKING HERE.

High crimes and misdemeanors: Lois Lerner, Hillary Clinton, and the implication of two American presidents

Again, I’ve said it before—but because the news is just now catching up to things I’ve said years ago, I have to address them, particularly in regard to the destroyed Lois Lerner emails at the IRS, and the same involving Hillary Clinton on her private server destroying classified information hoping to prevent a modern version of Watergate for her presidency which is occurring before she has even been elected. Both women should be in prison for “high crimes and misdemeanors.” They are notoriously criminal, both of them and it is disgraceful that they are both free to roam about unmolested currently without prosecution. They clearly committed crimes and are showing the world that criminals are in charge within the federal government. And you know what they have in common dear reader? Barack Obama was at the center of both their lives directly and if the evidence had not been destroyed it would likely point directly to the President’s office.

High crimes and misdemeanors is a phrase from Section 4 of Article Two of the United States Constitution: “The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.”

“High” in the legal and common parlance of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries of “high crimes” signifies activity by or against those who have special duties acquired by taking an oath of office that are not shared with common persons.[1] A high crime is one that can only be done by someone in a unique position of authority, which is political in character, who does things to circumvent justice. The phrase “high crimes and misdemeanors” when used together was a common phrase at the time the U.S. Constitution was written and did not mean any stringent or difficult criteria for determining guilt. It meant the opposite. The phrase was historically used to cover a very broad range of crimes.

The Judiciary Committee’s 1974 report “The Historical Origins of Impeachment” stated: “‘High Crimes and Misdemeanors’ has traditionally been considered a ‘term of art‘, like such other constitutional phrases as ‘levying war’ and ‘due process.’ The Supreme Court has held that such phrases must be construed, not according to modern usage, but according to what the framers meant when they adopted them. Chief Justice [John] Marshall wrote of another such phrase:

It is a technical term. It is used in a very old statute of that country whose language is our language, and whose laws form the substratum of our laws. It is scarcely conceivable that the term was not employed by the framers of our constitution in the sense which had been affixed to it by those from whom we borrowed it.”[2]

The constitutional convention adopted “high crimes and misdemeanors” with little discussion. Most of the framers knew the phrase well. Since 1386, the English parliament had used the term “high crimes and misdemeanors” to describe one of the grounds to impeach officials of the crown. Officials accused of “high crimes and misdemeanors” were accused of offenses as varied as misappropriating government funds, appointing unfit subordinates, not prosecuting cases, not spending money allocated by Parliament, promoting themselves ahead of more deserving candidates, threatening a grand jury, disobeying an order from Parliament, arresting a man to keep him from running for Parliament, losing a ship by neglecting to moor it, helping “suppress petitions to the King to call a Parliament,” granting warrants without cause, and bribery. Some of these charges were crimes. Others were not. The one common denominator in all these accusations was that the official had somehow abused the power of his office and was unfit to serve.

As can be found in[3] historical references of the period, the phrase in its original meaning is interpreted as “for whatever reason whatsoever”. High indicates a type of very serious crime, and misdemeanors indicates crimes that are minor. Therefore this phrase covers all or any crime that abuses office. Benjamin Franklin asserted that the power of impeachment and removal was necessary for those times when the Executive “rendered himself obnoxious,” and the Constitution should provide for the “regular punishment of the Executive when his conduct should deserve it, and for his honorable acquittal when he should be unjustly accused.” James Madison said, “…impeachment… was indispensable” to defend the community against “the incapacity, negligence or perfidy of the chief Magistrate.” With a single executive, Madison argued, unlike a legislature whose collective nature provided security, “loss of capacity or corruption was more within the compass of probable events, and either of them might be fatal to the Republic.”[4]

According to the Constitutional Rights Foundation, “Prior to the Clinton investigation, the House had begun impeachment proceedings against only 17 officials — one U.S. senator, two presidents, one cabinet member, and 13 federal judges.”[5]

The very difficult case of impeaching someone in the House of Representatives and removing that person in the Senate by a vote of two-thirds majority in the Senate was meant to be the check to balance against efforts to easily remove people from office for minor reasons that could easily be determined by the standard of “high crimes and misdemeanors”. It was George Mason who offered up the term “high crimes and misdemeanors” as one of the criteria to remove public officials who abuse their office. Their original intentions can be gleaned by the phrases and words that were proposed before, such as “high misdemeanor”, “maladministration”, or “other crime”. Edmund Randolf said impeachment should be reserved for those who “misbehave”. Cotesworth Pinkney said, It should be reserved “…for those who behave amiss, or betray their public trust.” As can be seen from all these references to the term “high crimes and misdemeanors”, there is no concrete definition for the term, except to allow people to remove an official for office for subjective reasons entirely.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_crimes_and_misdemeanors

Proof if it can ever be retrieved will show that Lois Lerner received marching orders from the IRS union rep who met directly with President Obama, to use the IRS to derail the Tea Party movement through audits and other legal harassment. Lerner has showed horrendous behavior toward conservatives in the emails that had been scanned through and released to authorities. Imagine what they destroyed! What’s most troubling is the communication between Lerner and her husband who advocated that he wanted to vote for a “socialist-labor candidate.” Out of all the bad things I have said about these people in the past, I hate being so right about them.

But Hillary, she used a former President in her husband to gain access to secret service and a plausible reason to have a private server to begin with, then used that security to hide acts she committed as Secretary of State under another sitting president in Obama. If that’s not high crimes and misdemeanors, nothing is. Obama is guilty and so are both Clintons, the one who used to be President and the one who wants to be. They are all inconceivably bad, so bad that people can’t even fathom the treachery on display, because we are not accustomed to comprehending it. That is why there are terms for such things so that those trusted with such delicate information can be prosecuted if they violate that trust. And until that happens, our legal system is a joke not worthy of a single tax dollar for further substantiation.

Rich Hoffman

 CLIFFHANGER RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Listen to The Blaze Radio Network by CLICKING HERE.

The Competent Carly Fiorina: Meet the woman who shut up Chris Mathews

I liked Carly Fiorina before the Fox News debates, but often thought she was too soft and repetitive on her position against Hillary Clinton. She did predictably well in the debates, which I was impressed with. She’s definitely a woman I could get behind for president. I like her a lot. But I wasn’t sure she was aggressive enough to be president until I saw her handle Chris Mathews after the debate, in an interview where he tried to peg her down with specifics. She not only provided specifics, she actually did it so well that Mathews conceded to her as time ran out. It was a very impressive exchange respectfully done, but most importantly, effectively implemented.

Cara Carleton “Carly” Fiorina (née Sneed; September 6, 1954) is a former business executive, and current Chair of the non-profit philanthropic organization Good360.[2] Starting in 1980, Fiorina rose through the ranks to become an executive at AT&T and its equipment and technology spinoff, Lucent. As chief executive officer of Hewlett-Packard (HP) from 1999 to 2005, she was the first woman to lead one of the top twenty U.S. companies.[3]

In 2002, Fiorina undertook the biggest high-tech merger in history, with rival computer company Compaq, which made HP the world’s largest personal computer manufacturer.[4][5] Following HP’s gain in market share as a result of the merger, Fiorina laid off thousands of US employees. However, [6][7] by the end of 2005, the merged company had more employees worldwide than both companies together had before the merger.[8] As of February 9, 2005 HP stock had lost more than half its value, while the overall NASDAQ index had fallen 26 percent owing to turbulence in the tech sector.[9][10][11] On that date, the HP board of directors forced Fiorina to resign as chief executive officer and chairman.[12][13]

After HP, Fiorina served on the boards of several organizations and as an adviser to Republican John McCain‘s 2008 presidential campaign. She won a three-person race for the Republican nomination for the United States Senate from California in 2010, but lost the general election to incumbent Democratic Senator Barbara Boxer.[14]

In 1980, Fiorina joined AT&T as a management trainee and rose to become a senior vice president overseeing the company’s hardware and systems division.[25]

In 1995, Fiorina led corporate operations for the spinoff from AT&T of Lucent, reporting to Lucent chief executive Henry B. Schacht.[26] She played a key role in planning and implementing the 1996 initial public offering of stock and company launch strategy.[27][28] Later in 1996, Fiorina was appointed president of Lucent’s consumer products business, reporting to Rich McGinn, president and chief operating officer.[28] In 1997, she was appointed chair of Lucent’s consumer communications joint venture with Philips, Philips Consumer Communications.[29] It was dissolved a year later after garnering only a 2% market share in mobile phones and losing $500 million on a revenue of $2.5 billion.[30] Also in 1997, she was named group president for the global service provider business at Lucent, overseeing marketing and sales for the company’s largest customer segment.[31]

During her time at AT&T, Lucent, and afterward, Fiorina was regarded by many as being the first woman to head up a Fortune 20 company, and to have overcome the metaphorical “glass ceiling“.[32][33][34]

Hewlett-Packard (HP)

In July 1999, Hewlett-Packard Company named Fiorina chief executive officer, succeeding Lewis Platt and prevailing over the internal candidate Ann Livermore.[35] Fiorina received a larger signing offer than any of her predecessors, including: $65 million in stock, a $3 million signing bonus, a $1 million annual salary (plus a $1.25–3.75 million annual bonus), $36,000 in mortgage assistance, a relocation allowance, and permission (and encouragement) to use company planes for personal affairs.[36] She became the first woman to lead a Fortune 20 company.[3] Fiorina immediately became a highly visible chief executive and remained so throughout her tenure at the company.[37]

Fiorina proceeded to reorganize HP and merge the part she kept with PC maker Compaq.[37] Although the decision to spin off the company’s technical equipment division predated her arrival, one of her first major responsibilities as chief executive was overseeing the separation of the unit into the standalone Agilent Technologies.[38] Fiorina proposed the acquisition of the technology services arm of PricewaterhouseCoopers for almost $14 billion, but withdrew the bid after a lackluster reception from Wall Street.[39] Following the collapse of the dot-com bubble, the PwC consulting arm was acquired by IBM for less than $4 billion.[40] Fiorina instituted three major changes to HP’s culture shortly after her arrival: a shift from nurturing employees to demanding financial performance, replacing profit sharing with bonuses awarded if the company met financial expectations, and a reduction in operating units from 83 to 4.[36]

In early September 2001, in the wake of the bursting of the Tech Bubble, Fiorina announced the merger with Compaq, a leading competitor in the industry. Fiorina fought for the merger, and it was implemented despite strong opposition from board member Walter Hewlett (the son of company co-founder William Hewlett) and 49% opposition among HP’s shareholders.[41][42] Hewlett launched a proxy fight against Fiorina’s efforts, which failed.[43] The Compaq merger[44] created the world’s largest personal computer manufacturer by units shipped.[45][46]

Fiorina presented herself as a realist regarding the effects of globalization. She was a strong proponent, along with other technology executives, of the expansion of the H-1B visa program.[47][48][49][50] Fiorina responded against protectionism in an editorial in the Wall Street Journal, writing that while “America is the most innovative country,” it would not remain so if the country were to “run away from the reality of the global economy.”[51] Fiorina said to Congress in 2004: “There is no job that is America’s God-given right anymore. We have to compete for jobs as a nation.”[48] While Fiorina argued that the only way to “protect U.S. high-tech jobs over the long haul was to become more competitive [in the United States],” her comments prompted “strong reactions” from some technology workers who argued that lower wages outside the United States encouraged the offshoring of American jobs.[52] In the US, 30,000 HP employees were laid off during Fiorina’s tenure.[6][53] In 2004, HP fell dramatically short of its predicted third-quarter earnings, and Fiorina fired three executives during a 5 AM telephone call.[36]

Fiorina frequently clashed with HP’s board of directors,[36][42] and she faced backlash among HP employees and the tech community for her leading role in the demise of HP’s egalitarian “The HP Way” work culture and guiding philosophy,[36][42][54] which she felt hindered innovation.[36][55] Because of changes to HP’s culture, and requests for voluntary pay cuts to prevent layoffs (subsequently followed by the largest layoffs in HP’s history), employee satisfaction surveys at HP—previously among the highest in America—revealed “widespread unhappiness” and distrust,[36][56] and Fiorina was sometimes booed at company meetings and attacked on HP’s electronic bulletin board.[36]

During Fiorina’s time as CEO, HP’s revenue doubled due to mergers with Compaq and other companies,[57][58] and the rate of patent filings increased.[58] According to reports, however, the company underperformed by a number of metrics: there were no gains in HP’s net income despite a 70% gain in net income of the S&P 500 over this period;[57] the company’s debt rose from ~4.25 billion USD to ~6.75 billion USD;[57] and stock price fell by 50%, exceeding declines in the S&P 500 Information Technology Sector index and the NASDAQ.[57][59] In contrast, stock prices for IBM and Dell fell 27.5% and 3% respectively, during this time period.[59]

Resignation from Hewlett-Packard

In early January 2005, the Hewlett-Packard board of directors discussed with Fiorina a list of issues that the board had regarding the company’s performance.[60] The board proposed a plan to shift her authority to HP division heads, which Fiorina resisted.[61] A week after the meeting, the confidential plan was leaked to the Wall Street Journal.[62] Less than a month later, the board brought back Tom Perkins and forced Fiorina to resign as chair and chief executive officer of the company.[63] The company’s stock jumped on news of her departure, adding almost three billion dollars to the value of HP in a single day.[64][65] Many employees celebrated her resignation.[36] Under the company’s agreement with Fiorina, which was characterized as a golden parachute by TIME magazine,[66] and Yahoo!,[67] it was reported she had been paid slightly more than $20 million in severance.[68]

https://www.carlyforpresident.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carly_fiorina

I noticed that Donald Trump did not go after her in the way he might otherwise—before the whole Megan Kelly thing erupted. I’d guess that is because he is looking at her as a running mate, which would be the best of both worlds. Trump understands the showbiz side of politics, which shouldn’t be the case, but is a brutal reality of any campaign. The left doesn’t play by the rules, and Republicans continue to lose because they don’t understand the theatrics well enough about how the left beats them. Trump is destroying that political model as we speak—which I am very happy about. Carly is a more traditional manager, and ultimately is more of what we’d all like to expect out of a President in the White House. But I really think she, and all the other candidates as well, need Donald Trump to reset the political field on both sides with his bombastic behavior. The political process needs Donald Trump, but I am very happy to see candidates in the field like Carly Fiorina emerging so strongly. She is a wonderful breath of fresh air.

Rich Hoffman

 CLIFFHANGER RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Listen to The Blaze Radio Network by CLICKING HERE.