Barack Obama's Head Start, Good or Bad?

As I have mentioned before, I grew up in poverty. Even now, I wouldn't call my financial situation a screaming success. But the number in my bank account does not define the person I am, nor should it. It is the measure of a person's character and heart that should define them.

With Barack Obama's desire to get children into school even younger than they are now, age three, he is following the pattern of many communist nations, dictators and despots. I am a Latter-day Saint, as such I have availed myself of the immense knowledge and history of both my church and my nation. In my church we have had a prophet at the helm since 1830. In the early 1900s a man named Joseph F. Smith was the prophet. He issued a statement stating that public education should never be the main source of education for a child, but merely supplemental to the education the child should be receiving at home. If parents had adhered to this way of thinking America would not be in the condition it is in now.

Barack Obama has asked that a Head Start program be made mandatory and children, beginning at the age of three, be forced to attend, although evidence proves that Head Start makes no difference at all. And yet the excuse I'm seeing from many across the social networks is that poor parents just can't afford to care for or educate their children so the government needs to step in. But what happens when the government, especially one such as ours today, takes over the education of your children at such an impressionable age?

Moving on to the history of the world, we see communists, dictators and despots always going after the children, just as Obama has in America, to craft the way they think and to remove all morality from their souls. And why would they do that? Looking back to Germany and my own family's history. My father, Fritz Sluyter, was born in Amsterdam, Holland to a Dutch father and a German mother. World War II hit his country on May 10, 1945. Over the course of the next few years it was unmitigated hell. They eventually ended up in Germany because my great-grandmother was dying. But by the time they got there, she was better and their paperwork was no longer valid. They were them in Germany illegally.

Oma (Grandmother), my dad and my aunt ended up hiding out in my great-grandfather's attic. My grandmother was a difficult woman, and I'm convinced she was just like her father, my great-grandfather. They had a fight and my great-grandfather turned them into the Gestapo. They went on the run through wartorn Germany trying to reach safety. A father/grandfather turned in his daughter and grandchildren to a known violent entity which would insure their imprisonment and possible death, and he felt no remorse.

How do we come to this in any nation? Simply put, it happens when parents cease to be the sole arbiter of the morals and values of their children. When children are removed from the home at three years of age to have their minds, morals and values carefully molded by another, the above is what happens. Are all parents good parents? No, of course not. Are most parents good ones? Yes, they are. Are all teachers bad? No, but most are, now. They have been thoroughly brainwashes to the liberal way of thinking and are doing their best to educate the nation's children to think the same way.

However, I submit poverty plays no part if the parent is determined. My mother worked full-time. In addition, she tended a full garden, milked goats and tended to chickens in order to keep food on our table. Despite all this, each night she read to us. First from whatever fiction book had caught her attention, generally James Herriot's books, and then from the scriptures. We began and ended each day with prayer. Dinner wasn't just for eating, but also for conversing about our days and what we learned at school. We had family night each Monday where the evening set aside for family. We had a small religious lesson, each of us taking a turn teaching it, another in charge of preparing the treats, and oft times we played games, wrote and acted out plays, etc. As such, my mother also taught us all to read and write before we entered kindergarten.

I submit poverty is an excuse for laziness. Poverty of the wallet does not mean poverty must also rule our lives, intellect or hearts. If you truly wish to save your children and the nation you are leaving them, there are four simple things you could do that would truly society around with a generation or two:

1) Families need to learn goodness together. That means you talk, and listen, to your children. You teach the difference between right and wrong. You teach them they are a child of God, and as such they have a divine heritage. You teach them to reach for knowledge, their dreams, and to understand their life and how it plays a part in the plan of salvation. You teach them to be the very best that they can be.

2) Families need to work together. In so doing, parents help their children to learn how to work hard and develop a good work ethic. If all parents do is order children around while they are sitting on the couch, they aren't getting the job done. If parents work with children, their children will internalize that work ethic and become good, strong, productive members of a free society.

3) Families must pray together. In so doing, you teach your children how to petition the heavens and conversely, to listen. As they teach them to pray, you arm them with a protection and inspiration they can gain from no other. Teach them of God, our Father in Heaven. Who He is and why we are here.

4) And families must read good books together. As I mentioned, my mother was fond of James Herriot's books about his escapades in the British countryside as a veterinarian. Now, we have a number of excellent authors in J. Scott Savage, James Dashner, J.K. Rowling, Janette Rallison and many others. I invite parents to start reading again, for through stories you are able to teach so many critical principles to children without always being in the authoritarian position.

Just because your bank account is low doesn't mean you can't help arm your children for life with knowledge, hope, and a vision for a bright future.

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Copyright 2012. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Should We Abandon the U.S. Constitution?

by Candace Salima, News Corner USA
Originally published on 8 January 2013

I will admit when I heard Georgetown University Professor Louis Michael Seidman’s advocation for the U.S. to abandon the Constitution I was in a state of shock. As a student of the Constitution, as well as having studied the life and times of the Founding Fathers, I am always shocked when I hear something so ridiculous.

FoxNews' Megyn Kelly spoke with Professor Seidman on his article, and book, advocating the abandonment of the Constitution to a more mob rule type of law...that is, until she pressed him for details.

You'll notice Professor Seidman continually contradicted himself. He initially said that the U.S. Constitution was the document that has made our nation broken with its “archaic, idiosyncratic and downright evil provisions.” For a man who has spent his career teaching people about the U.S. Constitution he is grossly inadequate for the job. His dismissal of the founding generation was offensive.

“This is our country. We live in it. We have the right to have the kind of country that we want. I’m not very happy with having a bunch of folks who have been dead for over 200 years...telling us what kind of country we have.” Professor Louis Michael Seidman

Seidman's lack of understanding of the founding principles and what made this nation great, not to mention the advice the Founding Fathers gave us over the next few years is stunning. A Georgetown professor who can't tell his head from a hole in the ground. Big surprise.

Seidman complains,

"Of all the constitutions in the world, the American Constitution is the most difficult to amend,” he proclaimed. “It’s only been amended 27 times — only 17 times if you don’t count the Bill of Rights."

That, my idiotic friend, would be the point. The Founding Fathers didn't just jot down the Constitution and walk away. Jefferson and Franklin traveled abroad studying the different forms of government. They studied history, and they focused on the Anglo Saxon original version of government. They haggled, argued, negotiated and this beautiful document of governance was the result.

"Oh, but Candace," you say. "What about the 3/5ths clause, it's evil." And yes, it was evil. But have you stopped to see why that clause was included? The North was notoriously anti-slavery, the South's entire industry depended on it. King George was knocking on the door, the Articles of Confederation were a dismal failure, the colonies were knee deep in debt, and the Constitutional Convention was called to fix things, and fix it they did. They threw out the Articles of Confederation and crafted, with much debate, the U.S. Constitution, 4,543 words that changed the course of history. Nobody got everything they wanted, but what we received is a solid form of government. The 3/5ths clause was the key compromise to get the South on board, which was critical to the salvation of the fledgling nation, however, it was supposed to be sunsetted out early in the 19th Century, but it wasn't. It took the Civil War to finally keep the agreement made in Philadelphia in 1776, all men who had been created equal were finally free.

Judge Andrew Napolitano responded to Seidman's comments with: “Think of it this way – the purpose of the Constitution is to govern the government, to restrain it, to make sure Congress writes the laws, the president enforces the laws, the courts interpret the laws.” Without the Constitution, Napolitano argues personal liberties would die because the government would have too much control. He says that it’s a “brilliant” document that “assures that too much power won’t end up in one place.”

He concluded, “The Constitution is the supreme law of the land. If you want to amend it, amend it, but you can’t overlook it.”

Over 80+, according to George W. Bush, constitutions in the world are based on our Constitution, and for good reason. It's a solid form of government that has held America in good stead until we passed the 16th and 17th Amendments, which is when we started to have trouble. Well, to be frank, the Dred Scott Case as well as Wicker v. Filmore also altered the course of America forever. The main point is this, we didn't start having the trouble we've had in the last century, and this one, until we altered the fundamental foundation of the U.S. Constitution.

Conservatives, as a whole, understand the fundamental rights found in the Constitution are ones that provide the opportunity for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Are those guaranteed? No? Nor should they be, because they are the end result of each individual human's choices in life. When government tries to dictate these things, it always ends in the complete eradication of freedom and sheer misery for the citizens of that nation. The U.S. Constitution was written by wise and good men raised up for the sole purpose of protecting the citizens of America from rogue governments, liberals, and idiotic professors.

Maybe Professor Seidman needs to go back to the beginning, back to where I first learned of the founding of America, School House Rock:

And maybe Professor Seidman needs to see "I'm Just a Bill," also from School House Rock:

The basics of what I'm attempting to teach Professor Seidman is to go back to the beginning. When we have something as precious as the U.S. Constitution is, then we must fight to keep it as the rule of law. It isn't supposed to be easy, because when it's as precious as the freedoms we have and enjoy, it should never be easy to take them away. Ever.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

The Prayer by Jessie Funk & Dan Beck

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Awaken to the Beauty of the American Spirit

by Candace Salima, a News Corner USA Editorial
Originally published on 12 January 2013

Has anybody noticed they are using the exact same tactics used in France long ago that led to the beheading of the aristocracy? For God's sake people, awaken to the manipulations going on around you. Stop with the deliberate ignorance, stop being lifeless, mindless robots, and wake up to the astonishing beauty of the American Spirit and BE AMERICANS!

The Chicago Teachers Union President, Karen Lewis jokes about beheading the rich. She stands there at her bully pulpit and casually throws references to the beheading of the rich and then quickly adds, "We're not at that time now." From the audience, we hear an addition to Lewis patently ridiculous comment, "Yet."

For six years I, and millions of other Americans, have been fighting day and night to educate America, to remind them of who we are as a nation, and as a people. For my own ancestry, we came to America in the mid 1500's, fleeing the monarchies of Europe to find a new life in an harsh and unforgiving land. Generation after generation answered the call to form this nation, fighting in wars, fighting their way westward, standing for religious liberty and freedom, I am descended of men and women who stood proud as Americans for five centuries and counting.

In my ancestral line there are monarchs, princes and princesses, dukes and duchesses, but more importantly, there are blacksmiths, bakers, grocers, ranchers, farmers, doctors, artists, musicians, actors and actresses, city planners and builders, a little bit of everything and all that coalesced into hundreds of thousands of my line living in America now. It is a tragic circumstance America finds herself in now. After all the tears, sweat, blood and sacrifice of generations upon generations before us, we stand at a moment where our freedoms are slipping away, the rich and wealthy are condemned for their successes, women are vilified for being conservative, men are castigated for the same, and madness reigns.

No, America has not descended into another civil war, but the pages of time have turned and we can either look closely at the book that is our history, or we can descend further into the economic and constitutional quagmire fostered by the those in power. I often quote Santayana, who loosely said, "Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it."

We look to the histories of the world, and of our own nation, and the root of all that is happening in America is the complete erosion of the family unit and the American spirit. Instead of remembering that we are a strong, courageous, imaginative, determined, self-reliant people, half of America's population have embraced the "gimme" philosophy and are determined to bring us all down to the lowest common denominator. Instead of reaching for the stars, they would rather we slog about in the gutter, together.

Awaken to the greatness that is America. Understand that within our hearts is the ability to rise above the circumstances of today and remember...We are America.

I am America by Krista Branch

The Statue of Liberty is associated with the words: "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free." We, as Americans, must remember that it doesn't say: "Be tired, poor, the huddled masses yearning to breathe free." We are freedom's last stand on the earth, we must not fail.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Of Mice and Men

by Candace Salima, a News Corner USA Editorial
Originally Posted on 12 January 2013

I listen to the news every day. In addition, I comb through all the news sites in order to keep my thumb on the pulse of what's going on in America. As you can imagine, I don't get much of a true vision of what is going on until I hit social media. It's a time intensive process, but it is how I stay on top of things, and I've come to the conclusion we have become a nation where there are more mice then there are men.

This morning Frank Luntz was on FoxNews talking about "messaging." Apparently when we say we want a smaller government, liberals and the uninterested/uniformed lose their minds and promptly vote for the biggest knucklehead in the room. Luntz said we're supposed to use the language "more efficient government." This was just one example of Republicans having to reduce their language to the lowest common denominator so "they" don't misunderstand us. And don't be fooled, they do understand precisely what we're saying, but they don't want "smaller, more efficient government" to get in the way of their government handouts.

Let's take the "debt ceiling" debate that is flying fast and furious right now. Senator Mike Lee addressed the language problem perfectly, "We have to distinguish between default and failing to pay the interest on our loan, or allowing the government to shut down. This is very different, we must shy away from this hyperbolic language so that we don't confuse the American voter...the way to solve the financial problems America faces is to come up with a meaningful solution, like Cut, Cap and Balance, the legislation I sponsored. We need to say we'll raise the debt limit IF we see substantial cuts in the process." Senator Mike Lee is a man.

In other words, the Democrats are screaming, "The sky is falling! The sky is falling!" While the Republicans are simply saying, let's exert some reason into the dialogue, realize we can't continue on this unsustainable path, and let's get our spending under control so America can flourish." And what do I say? Let's stop the blame game, roll up our sleeves, and do what is right for America. Not what is right for the Democrats. Not what is right for the Republicans. But what is actually right for America. The Democrats are mice stirring up the other mice. The Republicans, in this dialogue, are men.

Now let's talk illegal immigration. Senator Marco Rubio is racing to provide legislation that will provide a legal path for the 12+ million illegal aliens in our nation, trying to beat Barack Obama granting amnesty to them all...both trying to secure the next election for their party rather than doing what is right. The Democrats throw around words like "fair share" which really means, "If you've made any money, we're going to take it to subsidize all the lazy people over there." Barack Obama and Marco Rubio are both mice, neither really addressing the problem and granting lawbreakers legal status for violating multiple American laws. If you REALLY want to fix the illegal alien problem, seal the southern border of the United States first, then deal with the criminals inside our borders. It's ridiculous to not plug the hole before you deal with the flood of illegal aliens. Ronald Reagan tried that and here we are again, overrun by illegal aliens.

Of mice and men...sadly the mice are running amuck in the United States and are desperately hoping to turn this once great, powerful nation into a namby pamby European country. Oh yeah, I said it. America used to be comprised of men and women who knew how to work for what they wanted. She used to have men and women who would protect their families, and strangers, at all cost. There used to be a nation, coast to coast, who stood for freedom and liberty, even laying their lives on the line for these eternal principles. But now, there are more mice then there are of this type of American.

We must stop leaving the education of our children to the schools. Be an active participant in the education process of your sons and daughters. Make certain they are being educated properly in history, English, math, etc. Everything else being taught in school should be taught by you. There are four things families can do to take control again, and take control we must, we simply cannot afford anymore mice in America.

Families need to work together. In so doing, parents teach their children a solid work ethic and the value of doing a good job. This is something missing in this latest generation, and the solution is very simple. Families need to work together.

Families need to learn goodness together. This means parents need to help their children internalize THEIR sense of right and wrong, not some idiotic public schoolteacher. Morals and values you hold dear must be taught to them, that they might recognize and understand the difference between the folderol being taught in the schools, as opposed to what really is.

Families need to pray together. Families who read the scriptures and pray every morning, and then pray again at the close of the day, build a bond that is unassailable. Praying helps children to understand the role of God in our lives, and in the world. In so doing, that which is good remains good, and that which is bad remains bad.

Families need to read good books together. One of my fondest memories of my childhood is when my mother would gather us together at the end of the day and read to us. First, she would read from a book like James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small. She would laugh so hard as she read to us that tears would be rolling down her cheeks. After a chapter from that, she would read to us from the scriptures. Yes, reading good books together can teach valuable principles to your children, as well entertain them.

These four simple things, if faithfully done by families, will turn society around within a generation or two. We will stand strong again, able to be that shining beacon of liberty to the world. And really, do we want to be mice, or do we want to be men?

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

This is America

This is America. Our ancestors carved a nation out of this harsh, unforgiving continent. They fought, they bled and died to make her free. Incredible inventions came from America, technology and business thrived. We not only celebrated success, we encouraged it in every single American. We fought in two world wars to keep the world from being taken over by madmen. Our inventors, entrepreneurs, ranches, farms, and orchards thrived and an abundance came to our nation. We've gone through dark times and we've gone through times of prosperity.

And then came the greed. And then came the communists. And then, finally, came the self-entitled who sound the death knell of any nation. But this I know and firmly declare, we will not fall. We are shaken, but we will rise from this too. It will require us to turn from our petty differences and stand strong as Americans in the common goal of restoring the Republic. It will require a steadfastness of heart and soul, an endurance of spirit and an untold strength found in Americans for centuries.

There is precedence for what I'm asking of my fellow Americans. Look back through our history, from the moment the pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock to this very day where America stands in more danger than she has ever been. We have overcome everything that has been thrown at us whether it be war or economic depression. But we face an unprecedented time in America foretold by one of her greatest presidents:

Abraham Lincoln said, "America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves."

Where is this hope I speak of? It can be found in the words of a very wise man and noted religious authority, Gordon B. Hinckley. In 1998 he spoke to the New York Press Club and talked of how to turn society around in a generation or two. Interestingly, it is exactly what progressives have tried to destroy and have largely succeeded save for a select portion of the population. Hinckley spoke of the family unit and prophetically declare that as the health of the family goes, so goes the health of a nation. Destroy the family and you destroy the nation.

What did Gordon B. Hinckley say that struck me so fiercely? He gave us four things each family could do that would strengthen the familial bond and therefore, the family. They are:

ONE: Families need to work together. Why? It's really rather simple. If families work together the children learn the work ethic of their parents. If their parents show by word AND example, then the children internalize that solid work ethic.

This principle counteracts laziness and the self-entitlement nature that is destroying America right now.

TWO: Families need to learn goodness together. In years gone by it was the parents who taught their children what was right and wrong. It was the parents who taught the children of their history, the nation's history, of God and of hope. It was the parents who explained the facts of life. Parents were the moral compass and properly so.

When these responsibilities were abdicated to the public schools, the progressives/humanists took over and America is now producing children who believe that not only does the world owe them a living, but that anything goes. This also produced the destructive sense of self-entitlement. Parents look at their children and wonder what in the world happened, and it can be directly traced to abdicating one of the most important responsibilities of a parent, the raising of their children.

THREE: Families need to pray together. Everything that is America is based on the divine hand that has guided us from the beginning. A nation founded on Judeo/Christian principles, we recognized and accepted the God of this Land, who is Jesus Christ. In praying together morning and night, as a family, children learn that there is a higher power, one that watches over us all. If we do not forget Him, He will not forget us.

If family prayer is abandoned than that recognition of a higher power, the subsequent lessons of what is right and what is wrong, is abandoned. Children no longer look to their parents as the ultimate authority and the family unit is broken. Daily prayer brings inspiration, guidance and strength that can be found nowhere else.

FOUR: Families need to read good books together. Good books are like parables. Woven within an excellent story you will often find life lessons which pierce your heart in ways no others can. In good stories we learn of valiance, weakness, overcoming, failing, love and sorrow.

If books are read that teach of disrespect uncorrected, children run amuck and everything turning out okay, evil triumphing over good, bad behavior held up as good, the "villainization" of parents, then we produce precisely the type of society we have now, a deeply destructive one.

Gordon B. Hinckley went on to say that if families would do these four simple things it would turn society around within a generation or two. This generation is nearly lost if those who participate in the Occupy Wall Street movement is any indication. But there are enough Americans left who still believe in God, believe that family is the ultimate reason to live, and know that America is the last best hope for freedom and liberty in the world.

You. You are the ones I am reaching out to and asking for you to stand up for what you believe in, and for your loved ones. Stand up, shoulder to shoulder, with other Americans from North to South, East to West, and say, "This is America."

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Copyright 2012. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

The Right Way v. The Wrong Way

Originally published December 4, 2012 on News Corner USA 

This is a funny time to be living in America. We stand on the precipice of a fiscal calamity while Washington, D.C. blithely plays "politics as usual." Your average American would assume that every elected and appointed official would be furiously working away, twenty hours a day at minimum, finding the solution to the United States' out-of-control spending. That average American would be wrong. Barack Obama just embarked on a $4 million vacation with this family, leaving Congress to deal with the mess.

America is over $16 trillion in debt, $5 trillion of which was added by the Obama Administration alone, with growth to GDP at a dismal 2.7%. In case you're wondering, we need a bare minimum of GDP (Gross Domestic Product) to growth of 4% in order to maintain a healthy economy. We fall far short of that with a ridiculously low 2.7%, which is the highest it has been in four years.

So now that we understand precisely the condition America is in, and it is not pretty, let's see what the key players have been up to as of late.

Barack Obama, who seems to be endlessly on a campaign rather than taking a shot at governing, is urging his supporters to call, email, tweet, text, and generally harass the Republicans into agreeing to what our perfectly ridiculous president wants:

• $1.6 trillion in new taxes. (Yes, he wants that on top of the 21 new Obamacare taxes slamming the Middle Class as of January 1st, 2013, as well as the 4,100 new regulations also hitting us at the beginning of the new year.)
• Executive Power over the raising of the debt limit, completely bypassing Congress.
• $50 billion in new stimulus spending

and that's just the beginning. Our Barack Obama has delusions of grandeur, kingdoms, thrones and absolute power. It's his bad luck that Congress and the American people stand in his way.

In case you're wondering, that's a Democrat wishlist that would plunge America firmly into a depression that will make the Great Depression look like a full scale 4th of July picnic in the park. The tipping point would be Obamacare which tiptoed into the American healthcare system this year with the kind of good stuff, and hits us with a baseball bat in January, then blasts us with a tank come January of 2014. This is not survivable for any economy, and you may look at Europe to see that this is absolute truth. So that's what the Democrats are doing.

And how about those Republicans? What are they up to?

Well, let's look back a couple of years and count what they've been up to lately. While the U.S. Senate and the President have failed to issue a budget for four years, the House of Representatives, controlled by the Republicans, has submitted budget after budget, jobs bill after jobs bill, legislation upon legislation, to pull America out of this economic quagmire. Unfortunately, those are all languishing on Senator Harry Reid's desk, gathering dust.

As the fiscal cliff grows ever closer the Republicans have been meeting with business leaders and the governors of successful states. The states pulling themselves out of the economic doldrums are all red states, meaning they are manned by Republican governors using solid conservative economic principles to bring healthy economies back to their constituents.

Our Founding Fathers knew what they were doing when they set up our republican form of government. They established the states as the laboratories for the federal government. They wrote a Constitution that firmly separated the limited powers of the federal government, outlined in Article 1, Section 8, and the 10th Amendment rights of the states. But most of all, they reserved most of the power in this great American experiment to the people.

America has lost her way. We forgot that men fought and died to establish America. We forgot that pioneers and mountain men paid dearly for this Republic we so cavalierly threw away on November 6th of 2012, a day that will go down in history as one of the most bitterly regretted days in our nation.

I wish I could say that we do not have troubling times ahead, but I fear I cannot. With the economic path we are on, let alone the vast inroads into our constitutional rights, we are headed for some dark days. They cannot be avoided unless the Republicans in the House of Representatives hold strong to those foundational principles that make the Grand Old Party great.

There was a day when we, as a nation, knew that hard work and standing for what we believed in were good things, things to be valued and celebrated. When those who began in poverty but reached the highest levels of success were to be admired rather than vilified as Obama and the Democrats have done. More so, when those born in wealth refused to rest on their laurels and went out and made their own fortunes. When God, family and country were abiding values that guided every American, although these foundational principles are under attack now. No more are we Kennedy's "Ask not what your country can do for you, but rather what you can do for your country." Instead, a full half of our nation is on their knees with a begging hand held out to an increasingly powerful government that can't seem to figure out that Keynesian economics are, and always have been, an unmitigated disaster.

Prior to the election, a gentleman on the path to citizenship in America said some troubling words to me, "If I could vote, I would vote for Barack Obama."

"Why?" I asked.

"I don't like how radical the Republican Party has become."

"It is a sad day in America when believing in God, standing for the U.S. Constitution, and believing in free enterprise have became a hiss and a byword." He had no response.

And that brings us to this very moment in time. Bad is good, and good is bad. Liberty versus a willingly entered into bondage is where we are headed. If Americans do not wrest control away from the government and began educating themselves as to what is really going on in America, we are forever lost.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Our Better Nature

My husband loves to watch these shows that spotlight man's base nature, like Beyond Scared Straight and others. You don't even need to watch the shows like Bridezillas, who continually and endlessly shock me at their ridiculous behavior, and I'm even more shocked that their fiancee's go through with the marriages. Don't even get me started with Jersey Shore, and a few others. It's brought me to a single conclusion in regards to the state of mankind; at some point we stopped trying to be better people and embraced the natural man, much to the detriment of modern society.

Before the feminist movement took over the American landscape, it was commonplace for women to behave like...women. Some were really feminine, some were more tomboyish, but always women. Men, well before the likes of Gloria Steinem and others, largely treated women with the respect we used to treat ourselves.

But now chivalry is all but dead. Women and men both embrace crudity, baseness and relish their roles as the lowest common denominator. No more do they strive to be better people, to educate and refine themselves. No more are there goals being set that would not only improve upon oneself, but also improve the circumstances of the community around them. We no longer live in a society where the majority strives to be better.

The question is this? Does it matter? I believe it does matter. Once we abandoned the effort to elevate ourselves rather than succumb to the natural man, society as a whole started a downward turn that brought us to where we are to today. "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you," and "love one another", two of the greatest commandments Jesus gave, seem to have no place in modern society, for they have been perverted and twisted beyond recognition.

This is all part and parcel of the entitlement society America is emerging into. If we have no desire to hold ourselves to a higher standard, then we lose all respect for those who do. If we have no desire to work for a living, then we emerge into these beings who feel entitled to everything another has worked years to achieve. Drunk, drugged, high on base living, I give you modern society.

When we taught our children it was an admirable thing to improve ourselves, society and America excelled. When learning the story of the grasshopper and the ant, we came to understand we could play and dance all day, but if we didn't prepare for the coming winter we were going to be in a sorry state. And when the roles between men and women became blurred, women lost the individuality and feminine aspects of our natures. Not only are doors no longer opened for women, men think nothing of pushing and shoving past a woman to get there first. Women? Women swear like sailors, get into knockdown drag out fights, become drug queenpins, and others indulge in even more reprehensible behavior.

So what is the answer? The answer is seeing ourselves as God sees us rather than as Satan does. It's time to become real men and women. It's time to make good things good, and bad things bad again. When the line became blurred there, what started as the breakdown of society finished the transformation into an entitlement society where personal respect has no place.

It's not difficult to overcome the natural man or woman, but it does take work. Respect, honor, and loyalty are all things that can refine us. Helping and serving others can refine us and make us better people. Thinking of others first, not to the detriment of ourselves, but in a loving and caring manner, teaches us to grow and be better human beings. We must remember that we were not put on earth to wallow in the mud with the pigs, but rise above and leave this world a better place when we die.

You can still be tough and be a good person. You can still have a spine of steel and be a lady. You can still be imperfect, in fact we all are, and rise above the squalor that humanity has become. Eradicate crassness and crudity, and the complete submission to the natural man. For instance:

• If you feel the need to masturbate or have sex in public, you've succumbed to the natural man.
• If road rage is a common event in your life, you've succumbed to the natural man.
• If growling, screaming, raging against everything and everyone in your life is commonplace, you've succumbed to the natural man.
• If addictive behavior rules you, alcohol - drugs - eating to excess, you've succumbed to the natural man.
• If you are guilty of domestic violence, physical - psychological - emotional, then you have succumbed to the natural man.

These are but a few examples, but you get my point. I don't know when society decided to stop try being better and just indulge our every whim, but we've paid dearly for it. We must regain control of ourselves, appeal to the better side of our human nature, and remember God put us here to become better people, not worse. Stop embracing everything bad, and start looking to the good.

The very salvation of society and our nation depends on it.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Benefit for Alvin Salima

The companies, artists, musicians, authors, and artisans who stepped up and donated to the Silent Auction of my husband's benefit to defray the costs of his upcoming kidney transplant are truly amazing. The slideshow above shares with each of you who they are and what they have done.

Thursday, 28 March 2013

Noah's Reception Center

322 West 11000 South

South Jordan, Utah

Silent Auction -- Dinner -- Show
$100 per Ticket

SON - BROTHER - UNCLE - COUNSELOR - PATRIARCH

Alvin is a devoted son, brother, uncle, counselor, and patriarch of the Salima home. As a husband, Alvin is unparalleled, according to his wife, Candace. They have been married for nearly 18 years, and hope to have another 20 at minimum. Unfortunately, Alvin has end stage renal failure (kidney failure) and requires a kidney transplant. He is on three separate lists right now and is anticipated to be at the top of the list somewhere in the next one to six months. Alvin still works fulltime, so he is fully insured. However, there are the expected expenses of our portion of the surgery, take home medications, and aftercare.

Alvin is the favorite uncle of his nephews and nieces. He is an active uncle and relishes the time spent with each of them. Family is everything to Alvin, and even with his health challenges he does his best to spend what time he can with those he loves. Alvin's work experience with at-risk youth spans over 27 years. He has served in many capacities as a supervisor, program manager, facilitator and trainer, but by far his most rewarding work is direct contact with young people as a mentor and counselor. Occasionally, Alvin receives calls and letters from men and women he was able to reach and effect positive change when they were considered troubled youth. Alvin continues his direct work with young people as a treatment counselor for the Juvenile Justice Services Department in the State of Utah.

A Touch of New York Salon & Spa is sponsoring a benefit for Alvin to help raise monies to alleviate the personal cost of the kidney transplant. Go to Alvin's website to see what the Silent Auction items will be and learn more about each of our sponsors.

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Copyright 2012. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

The Heart of the Matter

Our nation is still reeling over the senseless murders of Newtown, Connecticut's children, teachers and administrators. Since that horrible day, more tragedies have occurred, and common sense seems to have flown out the window. So much so, that wild talk is being heard at every corner of the nation. But let's put aside the craziness of the responses and stop and consider the loss of precious children, their teachers and their administrators. The very heart of the matter takes us to those left behind.

There is no doubt in my mind that those lost to us on the 14th of December have been welcomed into heaven, cradled in the arms of our Savior and loved ones, and are doing just fine. But for those left behind to deal with the senselessness of the act and the loss of their loved one, the journey through sadness is just beginning.

There are the five stages of grief: Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance. The first stage hits quickly, and is passed through nearly as quickly. The anger, that's the phase we're in now. And with that anger comes lots of wild ideas to "fix the problem" without considering the ramifications of these ideas. That's what anger does, it rids the mind of reason and renders logical thought nearly impossible.

But can we stop and consider the lives of those lost, how they indelibly touched us, and what they have contributed to their families, their neighborhoods, their school, their city, the nation and the world. In our rage to find a solution, we've forgotten to consider that it may be wise to stop, think and then act.

Family is the "be all" and "end all" of life on this planet. There are good families, and there are bad families. And, there are those who have no family at all. God put us on this world in a family unit patterned after the one we left behind, so that we could master the family dynamic, have a solid foundational support, and to remember that no success in the world will ever compensate for failure in the home. A mother, a father, and children if they were doubly blessed, comprise the family unit. In that unit, each person plays an integral role in the functioning of that family. When one piece of that family is ripped away, the family still functions, however, there is a hole never fully replaced, but the healing can begin, and life can be happy again.

Turn from the madness of last sixty days, and remember the good things, the happy things, the silly things, and things you love most about your loved one. Concentrate on the good, rather than the bad. It happened. It's horrible beyond all measure. It should never have happened. But it did.

As a family, remember, embrace, turn to God, and work together to heal.

And to Newtown's Sandy Hook Elementary, as a school, don't throw away a perfectly good school, but work together to clean it up, make it bright and new, and hold a series of community events there to remove the psychological stain. Organize the parents, children, and police to come into the school and take part in the healing of the school, and the taking back of the school from the single act of a madman. Do not let the madman win.

As a city, work together to become cohesive, strong, and stable. Your police need to be visible on the streets, your mayor needs to address the city, your city council needs to be wise, and your citizens need to unite in the healing process. In addition, every administrator and teacher needs to become conversant with guns. When the principal rushed Adam Lanza he died in a hail of bullets. What if he had simply removed his gun and shot Lanza in the heart and head? How many people would have lived then? This discussion is one that must take place if we are to keep our schools safe and less of a target by madmen.

As a nation, we need to stop the ridiculous talk of "more" gun control, as if 300 gun laws on the books aren't enough, and start shining a light on mental illness. We need to focus on the root of the problem, not the symptom. Take the guns away and they'll find another way to kill. I give you Timothy McVeigh as an example. The guns are not the problem. Society is.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Mexico Schmexico

Mexico continues to complain bitterly about Arizona's SB-1070 immigration law. I find this laughable in the extreme.

Lawyers representing Mexico asked the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in a filing December 26th to uphold a lower-court ruling that blocked police from enforcing the ban. México argued the ban harms diplomatic relations between the United States, undermines the U.S.'s ability to speak to a foreign country with one voice and encourages the marginalization of Mexicans and people who appear to be from Latin America.

"México cannot conduct effective negotiations with the United States when the foreign policy decisions of the federal governments are undermined by the individual policies of individual states," lawyers for the Mexican government said in a friend-of-the-court brief. (FoxNews)

Really, Mexico foists its poverty class upon us, passing out pamphlets at the border detailing precisely how to break into the United States and survive without detection.

Senator Curtis Bramble (UT-R), early in 2012, identified identity theft by illegal aliens to be as high as 75%. My own research puts that number at 72%. But I think we may safely say that illegal immigration and identity theft are closely intertwined. In addition, my sources says these illegal aliens often purchase a new identity every three to four months to insure they are not caught. This creates an incalculable effect on the American people. But let's say we have 12 million illegal aliens in America (that's the low number, some put it as high as 25 to 30 million.) Calculating that out with the lowest numbers, that shows that 8,640,000 Americans are victimized by illegal aliens with their first purchase of any identity. From that point forward, it is incalculable.

News Corner USA's Tevita Toutai found that gangs and the illegal alien population is even more troubling, "This problem is further perpetuated as nearly 50% of all gang members arrested in 2007 in north and western Virginia were illegal immigrants. The statistics supplied by the Center for Immigration Studies demonstrates the magnitude of this problem in our country. Data of arrest performed by ICE in the same year illuminates that 75% of illegal gang members in the U.S. came from Mexico and El Salvador."

There are those who claim illegal aliens are paying their "fair share of taxes." I contend, that if they are doing that they are already breaking a number of federal laws. In order to work legally in America, an illegal alien must:

• Purchase an identity, thereby victimizing one American within hours of crossing the border illegally.
• With that fraudulent I.D. they open bank accounts, purchase housing (rental or mortgage), gain employment, credit, etc.
• On a daily basis, illegal aliens are breaking a number of laws over and over, as they blithely go about leaching off America.
• Sadly, the number one target for identity thieves in America are children. One particular illegal alien stated he felt bad "about using an American child's identity, but the kid didn't need it and he did."

If you've ever had to go a hospital emergency room after hours, you have to fight your way through the illegal aliens using the ER as a doctors office, thanks to the horribly misguided EMTALA legislation. Anything from the sniffles to a gun shot wound, English is scarcely found in the wee hours of the E.R. One hospital source stated that unless you were Latin and had a Latin last name, you had to pay no matter your circumstances. Illegal aliens, they get free medical care and the American people have to pay for it, as the hospitals then write it off as bad debt, and get a tax credit for it.

So Mexico's argument that they find it difficult to negotiate with America with SB-1070 in place is ludicrous. This is the same Mexico who held a U.S. Marine for four months, chained to his bed in a cartel prison. This is the same Mexico whose own immigration laws are exceedingly strict. This is the same Mexico who can't even control what's going on in their own nation, and they have the gall to complain about the U.S. enforcing our laws. Personally, I think we need to cut Mexico off for about ninety days and see how they feel about things then.

The United States of America is a nation struggling to pull ourselves back from certain economic destruction. We are a nation at war between two ideologies, "the gimme everything you have, it's mine" ideology, and the "work hard for what you have" ideology. Communism versus a republic way of doing things. The first burns itself out eventually, the second thrives with a responsible and actively engaged populace. So how about all the illegal aliens just go home, we can't afford you here. Period. And Mexico? Be quiet, you have more than enough to deal with in your own nation, largely that the cartels are running the show and not you. Tend to what's wrong at home, and let us do the same.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Why Won't the GOP Challenge Voter Fraud

It was a puzzling thing as one case of unchallenged voter fraud after another came to the forefront of the 2012 presidential campaign. Just to name a few:

• Voting machines defaulting to Barack Obama.
• Voting machines changing to Barack Obama.
• State of Ohio reporting that 1 out of every 5 voters were fraudulent seven weeks prior to the election.
• 100% plus turnout in all the Battleground States.
• 100% of precincts' ballots going to Barack Obama, not one vote for Mitt Romney.
• Busloads of strangers bused from polling place to polling place.
• Republican poll watchers and judges removed from the voting sites.
• Voter Intimidation from poll workers and the New Black Panthers.

The gross amount of voter fraud was stunning and at epic levels in the 2012 presidential campaign. So much so that there was no question the Mitt Romney Campaign or the RNC could have challenged every single one of these in court, and won. But not a peep came from either camp. Why?

I began hearing rumblings about a settlement agreement between the RNC and DNC crafted long ago, an agreement which prevented the RNC from challenging any voter fraud. I found that to be an impossible thought, for surely no one would ever agree to such a ridiculous set of circumstances. But it turned out that the RNC did just that.

I spent several hours poring over the Consent Decree between the Republican National Committee and the Democratic National Committee, originating in New Jersey between the two state committees, with one of the brightest legal constitutional minds in the nation. Much to my chagrin, the RNC had signed away its rights to challenge voter fraud due to their own actions. In so doing, they violated the civil rights of every American to a fair and free election process.

To be fair, the RNC could have challenged the election, and should have, they just didn't. Although the American people were screaming for someone, anyone, to challenge the election in court, no one did. So we dug deeper, and found that the RNC has challenged the Consent Decree in court, and according to Bob Unruh (WND), the case is now pending before the U.S. Supreme Court. I couldn't find the case on their docket, but that doesn't mean it's not there. And in all honesty, the Court isn't likely to find for the RNC, because they agreed to the terms of Consent Decree.

This is what it boils down to, the RNC sold Republicans down the river in 1982. There is room in the Consent Decree to challenge elections, but the RNC had to stop targeting minority voter registration. All the RNC had to do was send out voter registration cards to EVERYONE in the state, then challenge those that came back marked UNDELIVERABLE. They could have then challenged those voters at the polling places, regardless of race, creed or color. They could have coordinated with states to make sure every single Republican's voter registration was in place and properly filed. They could have stood their ground and challenged every bit of voter fraud committed by the Democrats in every single battleground state. They could have...they could have...they could have...but, they didn't.

Until this voter fraud mess in the presidential elections is straightened out, there will never be another honest election in the United States of America. And no one but a Democrat will ever sit in the Oval Office again. I am calling on Reince Priebus and the RNC to man up and deal with the situation, now. Stop waiting on the Supreme Court, stop waiting on the DNC, just stop. There is a path out of this mess, and it is one that is not terribly complicated. We figured it out in two hours, it's ridiculous that you've allowed your greed for power to stand in the way of honest elections in America. It's time to man up, recognize the path out of this quagmire you've pulled the Republican voter into, and get it done. And if you don't know the answer, email me, I'll explain it in clear cut detail. It's not difficult. What it is...is necessary.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Circumstances of Childhood Do Not Dictate Your Future

There's been a lot of talk lately of circumstances of life dictating one's future. I’m not saying its completely wrong, but I do largely disagree with the premise.

I grew up in abject poverty. There’s simply no other way to say it. We were really poor. We moved so often I ended up going to 23 different elementary schools (and that’s if I kept track properly.) Home to our family of seven was anywhere from a three bedroom home, to a single wide trailer. Clothes, those that we had, were purchased at second hand stores. Food, it was never fancy but it was good, even if it was only elbow macaroni in milk and pepper.

My mother, once she figured out how things were going to be with my biological dad, started making sure most of our moves ended us up where we could have chickens, goats and a garden. When she managed that, we had food. Good food that my mother produced herself. She gathered eggs, milked the goats, planted-tended-and-harvested the garden. Every fall, we had a huge family canning session that lasted weeks. But the food was available all through the winter. Rugs were made of old socks braided together and sewn in a circle. Quilts were made of clothes worn completely through. All my mother needed was a needle and thread, and she made use of everything we had. To make sure we could always fend for ourselves, she made sure that we learned to do all these things too.

But through it all, I never heard my mother mention the word “poor” or complain about our circumstances. She taught us to read and write before we entered kindergarten, thereby giving us a huge leg up in school. She took us to the library every single Saturday, no matter how far out it was (and sometimes it was 20 miles.) If we went to a rare movie, it was a matinee or drive in. She found an old ancient piano and music filled our humble home. She taught us to sing, dance, and play the piano. She read to us every single night, first from whatever wonderful book she was reading, and then the scriptures. We began and ended each day with family prayer, never failing to do this.

We went to school, to church, and to activities provided by the church and schools. Dances, activities, tubing (both of the snow and river variety,) plays, musicals, dance festivals, there was no end to the amazing entertainment which we enjoyed and participated in as well. We played, we dreamed, and we worked. We definitely weren’t rich or even moderately well off. But our lives were full of love, literature, song, and dance and our lives were based on the foundational core of Jesus Christ.

My mother made certain that we understood that while money was important, more important were the familial bonds, self-education, enjoying the beauty of the world around us, and taking advantage of opportunities, were what would make us rich, not money. Most of all, she taught us to hold to values and traditions she’d taught us, for that would guide us through life. What I’m trying to say is simply this, being born into poverty doesn’t mean your life will be a failure or you won’t make a difference. It doesn’t mean that you won’t eventually be wealthy or middle income. What it does mean, is you have a wealth of experience upon which to build a meaningful, successful life.

And that future of yours? That, my friends, depends entirely on you.

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Copyright 2012. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.