Puerto Rican Statehood? Hold on one second...

  It appears that the Democrats are trying to pull a fast one. If you saw Wednesday, April 28th's Glen Beck on Fox News, then you know about this. The House of Reps is today, April 29th, voting on a bill that would attempt to make Puerto Rico the 51st state. From my understanding, this bill, once passed by both houses, would require Puerto Rico to have a vote on whether or not Puerto Ricans are happy with the political status quo. If a majority of them say no, a second vote will require them to vote one of three ways, the historically most popular among them being statehood. Why are they doing this? It is assumed that if Puerto Rico becomes a state that it will vote democrat. As a state, it will get two senators and six or seven representatives in the House out in D.C. It would appear that dems are trying to strengthen their numbers.

These links explain further:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-luis-gutierrez/why-the-rush-on-the-puert_b_556328.html

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,591683,00.html

As I hope you can see, this is an urgent matter. Please call our good friend Representative Rick Larsen and tell him that it is a lousy bill(although a more professional word would probably be better).
I called the offices at the three numbers below and said the following:

Congressman Larsen,
I urge you to vote no on H.R. 2499, the Puerto Rican Democracy bill. For such an important matter, has not been considered sufficiently and does not appear to give the people of Puerto Rico the flexibility they deserve in determining their future. Talk to your Democrat colleague Representative Luis Gutierrez- he is of Puerto Rican ancestry and does not feel that this is in the best interests of Puerto Ricans.
Thank you and have a great day!

Phone numbers:
Bellingham: (360) 733-4500
Everett: (425) 252-3188
D.C. (202) 225-2605
I also sent the same message to him in an email via this link: http://www.house.gov/larsen/contact/

I hope you choose to voice you opinion on this. The earlier the better!

Sentinels of Liberty: A Message to Conservatives

     The American Armed Forces are the guardians of American liberty. They bought it with their blood during the Revolution and have kept it ever since, continuing to offer their bodies as roadblocks to tyranny. Their sacrifice has given us the most free nation on the face of the earth. However, their efforts, their toil, and their blood are undermined if we fail to understand our role as sentinels of liberty.

     The preamble to the Constitution starts with, "WE THE PEOPLE of the United States." That would be you and me. The Constitution was set forth by the people. While it was drawn up by brilliant political thinkers, part of its ratification was through conventions of delegates elected by the people. It is the people's government. Americans pride themselves that they live under such an enlightened form of government.

     Today, we seem to think that life in the United States is all privilege and little responsibility, particularly with regard to politics. When we gather around the dinner tables of our homes, we lament about the direction of the nation. The actions of our representatives exasperate us. Loud are our cries against waste, corruption and disregard for the principles of government that we know will steer our nation on a favorable course. We listen to pundits on the radio and on TV, making ourselves aware of the latest antics of our misguided politicians. Our frustration grows and we wish government would just get it right.

     Ultimately, the blame rests on us. Remember "WE THE PEOPLE"? We are a part of the government of this country. We elected those folks whose votes are the source of our annoyance. "But," you say, "I did not vote for them! And there is never anyone good to vote for, anyway." I have felt that way myself. Recently, I realized the solution. We have to shoulder our share of the responsibility of government. It is not enough to listen to talk radio, enlightening though it may be. It is not enough to hold rock-solid conservative views.

     The responsibility of the populace is not only to vote, but to select good candidates to run, to support those candidates, to rally when government errs, and to stand up to good principles of government in the media, our communities and our families. In short, we must be politically active.

     This requires a sacrifice in time and energy, which is the reason many of us have let these responsibilities slide. I certainly understand this. There are never enough hours in the day to accomplish my regular tasks, let alone be politically active. Another reason people don't get involved is a lack of concern. Not everyone finds politics interesting. Both of these objections fall when we consider our responsibility as a part of the government of this nation and the consequences of allowing the nation to continue on its current path.

     As a teenager, I started to drive late. While my friends all rushed out and got their licenses as soon as they turned 16, I just kept calling for rides. I did not care. Eventually, I did care, but could never seem to focus on educating myself for the drive and written tests. At last the day came when the man from the DOL told me that my driving skills were competent and that I could become a licensed driver. I then entered into the responsibilities of being a good driver and later, vehicle owner. I would be considered strange if I remained apathetic towards driving and at 40 still could not drive.

     An adult in this country who does not drive is considered weird or ever irresponsible, but when it comes to taking part in guiding our nation, no one thinks it unusual to leave the politics to the politicians. Something of far greater significance than driving a car is at stake: the fate of our nation. Are you going to leave that to politicians? We need to take the time to educate ourselves about current issues and candidates and than apply that knowledge so that we can take back our portion of this nation's steering wheel.

     We are the sentinels of liberty. Liberty is a gift given to us through more than two centuries of bloodshed. Lincoln expressed our duty, as the people, in the Gettysburg Address when he so poignantly said, "It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."