Our new President doesn't seem to be very wordy. Generally, his speeches are rather straightforward and to the point. Unlike Clinton and his reams of socialist rhetoric, Bush seems to actually mean what he says and plans to act on his words. So it was with great interest that I heard George W. Bush mention something about building communities to survive.

The interest was because, over the years, I saw first hand how, through the Great Society and other goofy liberal programs, the Democrats worked to destroy urban communities. Unfortunately, there seemed to be no real amplification by Bush on the "building communities" plan yet.

Not directly, anyway.

In his first official speech after taking the oath of office, President Bush did, however, offer some guidance to the people of the United States. At first, his words sounded more or less like normal Washington political rhetoric. But, they were not. Evidently President Bush was setting a tone for the administration to come when he said:

"I ask you to be citizens. Citizens, not spectators. Citizens, not subjects. Responsible citizens, building communities of service and a nation of character.

"I will live and lead by these principles: to advance my convictions with civility, to pursue the public interest with courage; to speak for greater justice and compassion; to call for responsibility, and try to live it as well."

That's an amazing statement by an American President in today's political climate. 'I ask you to [act like] citizens, not spectators or subjects [of government].' Which probably means that we are to meet our responsibility as American citizens.

What, then, is that responsibility?

Obeying the law is one such responsibility. Helping others become self sufficient would be another. Supporting and defending our homeland and our American way of life against all enemies, both foreign and domestic, is yet another responsibility of all American citizens. And, of course, so is insuring the health and safety of home, family and friends.

We give government certain police powers so that government can help protect the life, liberty and property of all Americans equally. We formed the federal government to: ". . . form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity," states the Preamble to our Constitution.

We, as citizens, are part of that equation. That is, we empower government to protect our life, liberty and property, but government's power to do so comes from us. Which means, we are not just casual observers in the scheme of things. We also have the responsibility to insure the protection of life, liberty and property in our respective areas.

The problem is, those working against our rights to life, liberty and property are very well entrenched within government and non-government organizations today. Many times those activities -- once labeled un-American activities by honorable politicians -- are now perpetrated by government itself. Socialists and communists are everywhere, always working to disparage the ideals that made this country great.

For instance, about two-thirds of the Democrats in Congress belong to either the Progressive Caucus or one of Senator Leiberman's Third Way Democrat organizations -- groups which strongly support socialism and are expressly against the government intended by the Founding Fathers.

President Bush picked John Ashcroft as the nation's attorney general. Democrats picked every sort of radical communist and socialist they could find to testify against Ashcroft at the hearings.(1) Where once, these kooks would not dare set foot on Capitol Hill, today they are invited guests of extremist Senators.

Back in 1954, President Eisenhower proposed stripping communists of their US citizenship. That might be something to consider again today. If we shipped all the communists and socialists off to a communist or socialist country, there would be many hundreds of good jobs open in government and in the national media.

At the very least, anyone who will not even support and defend our Constitution, as intended by the Founding Fathers, certainly cannot be trusted to be in a position of influence or authority.

So yes, President Bush makes a good point when he calls for us to become active citizens rather than common spectators who act like subjects of the federal government. We must organize and become active. The bond that ties us together as a nation is our Constitution. Anyone not faithfully supporting the Constitution is, therefore, working against us.

That's going to be a fight. These socialists and communists are well entrenched. But, it's a good fight. And we can win.

Start with the media. Inform advertisers that their products are boycotted by your family as long as they support the left.

More on this coming up soon. A lot more.

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1. http://freecongress.org

As many of us know, sometimes some very strange things happen in government. Once in a while strange is good, though. And, this time, that was exactly the case.

Clinton planned to legislate by executive order again before leaving office. Apparently he had a few debts left to pay to his far-left cronies. So, he had his staff write up a few dozen new executive orders, rules and regulations. They then sent the whole pile of them over for publication in the Federal Register during Clinton's last couple days in office.

Well, not wanting to be left out on this end, we went searching to see just what Clinton & company had done to us this time. But, no one seemed to know, exactly.

Oh sure, we heard that Clinton turned loose another $2.7 billion for housing grants and "empowerment programs and vouchers" -- whatever that means this time. And, there was a new rule concerning HUD's "get-tough" policy to kick drug dealers and criminals out of public housing. We were told that this was actually a mischief rule that did little else but muddy the waters of the original rule. There was even a rule forcing state and local governments to hire interpreters and provide translations of written material so non-English speaking foreigners can apply for HUD benefits easier.

The eco-whackos wanted 58 million more acres of federal land off limits to road building and logging, so that was done. An FAA rule was written that allowed restrictions on helicopters and airplanes providing sightseeing tours over public lands. And, to pacify the unions, Clinton issued new regulations imposing more workplace safety rules.

The funniest rule we learned about was to regulate the size of the holes in Swiss cheese. Yes, the federal government, in its quest to regulate everything in human existence from womb to tomb, actually regulates the hole size in Swiss cheese. Cheese makers lobbied government to allow smaller holes so the cheese would be easier to cut in high speed slicing machines. We can't help wondering who was paid for that new rule and how much it cost.

Anyway, these and many more new executive orders, rules and regulations were quickly sent out for publication in the Federal Register before the Clinton administration left. But, apparently they were not quick enough.

Immediately after George W. Bush took the oath of office, the printers at the Federal Register received a telephone call from the new administration. The Bush administration put a hold on all rules and regulations that had not yet been published in the Federal Register.

"All regulations that had not been published have been affected by this," Bush's spokesman Ari Fleischer said.

Furthermore, Bush promises to review all other executive orders already signed by Clinton.

Meanwhile, many bureaucrats and regulators are in a bit of a tizzy. The whole of their working lives is occupied restricting what American citizens may or may not do and what kind of bureaucratic hoops they must jump through to exercise the few freedoms they have left. Any loopholes, of course, require more new rules and regulations. It's just no fun being a regulator if they can't keep piling on new and harsher rules to control us.

So, while most Americans are suddenly becoming rather happy with Dubya as our new President, there is a large contingent of the regulatory bureaucracy that is quickly becoming very upset. They want a continuing influx of new and stronger powers and an ever expanding budget.

It appears, however, that President Bush -- their new boss -- may start regulating the regulators.

It's about time someone did.

Did you know the Army could come on your property and force you to do what they want with it? Sure enough! And, if you didn't do exactly as the Army ordered, they would haul your noncompliant butt off to the hoosegow and take a major part of your savings, and maybe your property.

The American military is not supposed to have any power whatsoever over American civilians in peacetime. But, they carved themselves out a little niche that allowed them the power to regulate. Then, they hired a bunch of environmental whackos and sent them forth to nit-pick the activities of people who are not bothering anyone in the world.

Congress gave the Army Corps of Engineers certain regulatory powers so they could do major projects like dredging commercially traveled rivers and building dams. Supposedly, the Army's regulatory power was limited only to major interstate shipping lanes -- the navigable waters of the United States. But, the Army wanted more power so, like all regulators, they stretched their authority just a wee bit.

For instance, they invented a series of rules and regulations that would allow them regulatory power over a pond in Kentucky, a puddle on Oklahoma or a ditch in Kansas. Suddenly, according to the Army, they could regulate anyplace there was standing water. The water didn't have to be "standing" very long, either. A bathtub sized indentation in the ground that "could" fill with water whenever and if ever it rained enough was cause for the Army to take charge. They regulated mudflats, sandflats, streams, prairie potholes and, of course, wetlands.

One of the silly little "rules" they invented a few years back is the "glancing goose" test. They said, with a straight face no less, that geese are a migratory bird. Therefore, if a goose glances down and can see water anywhere, the Army may regulate the land that water is on. Ditches, ponds, marshes, puddles, whatever -- they all count. Therefore, the Army would be the overseer of what could be done with that land and the landowner would need a permit to change anything.

According to Army think, geese are in interstate commerce because they fly across state lines. They don't buy anything, but never mind. We're talking "Army think" here. Besides, the Army wanted more power over the American people. That was their excuse to wield some.

To say, large property owners, such as farmers with property nowhere near rivers or oceans, were very displeased with this asinine arrangement is putting it mildly.

Bob Stallman, President, American Farm Bureau Federation said: "The Corps' decision to claim jurisdiction over isolated ponds and wetlands because of a presence of a few migratory birds was clearly an unauthorized, unwarranted expansion of the Clean Water Act -- and was beyond congressional intent when it wrote the act."(1)

Anyway, the Army got away with that silly charade for a few years.

Well, there came a time when the Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County got jerked around by the Army Corps of Engineers over using an abandoned sand and gravel pit as a dump. The pits had filled with water, so the Army claimed control, then had a bit of a problem making a decision.

The Solid Waste Agency needed the use of those pits, had the money and so took the Army to court. The case made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court(2). The Court was not pleased and the goose test got cooked, as it were.

Chief Justice Rehnquist, writing for the majority, admonished: "Twice in the past six years we have reaffirmed the proposition that the grant of authority to Congress under the Commerce Clause, though broad, is not unlimited. Respondents argue that the 'Migratory Bird Rule' falls within Congress' power to regulate intrastate activities that 'substantially affect' interstate commerce. They note that the protection of migratory birds is a 'national interest of very nearly the first magnitude' and that, as the Court of Appeals found, millions of people spend over a billion dollars annually on recreational pursuits relating to migratory birds. These arguments raise significant constitutional questions. For example, we would have to evaluate the precise object or activity that, in the aggregate, substantially affects interstate commerce. This is not clear, for although the Corps has claimed jurisdiction over petitioner's land because it contains water areas used as habitat by migratory birds, respondents now, post litem motam, focus upon the fact that the regulated activity is petitioner's municipal landfill, which is 'plainly of a commercial nature.' But this is a far cry, indeed, from the 'navigable waters' and 'waters of the United States' to which the statute by its terms extends.

"These are significant constitutional questions raised by respondents' application of their regulations, and yet we find nothing approaching a clear statement from Congress that it intended §404(a) to reach an abandoned sand and gravel pit such as we have here. Permitting respondents to claim federal jurisdiction over ponds and mudflats falling within the 'Migratory Bird Rule' would result in a significant impingement of the States' traditional and primary power over land and water use."

Therefore, the Army is chased out of the business of regulating where we can dig a pond or ditch and so must stay out of our lives.

"America's farmers applaud today's Supreme Court ruling that the Army Corps of Engineers cannot rely on the so-called 'migratory bird rule' to assert jurisdiction over isolated wetlands," Stallman said at the conclusion of the case. "The court agreed with assertions in a brief filed by the American Farm Bureau Federation, the North Dakota Farm Bureau and the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, that the Corps' jurisdiction was without authority under the Clean Water Act."

So, the Army may now discharge a couple hundred of its environmental whackos back to the far-left groups from which they came. And, we who own a couple acres may feel free to dig or fill on our own property wherever and whenever we wish.

This ruling would, of course, pertain to all federal agencies equally.

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1. http://www.ndfb.org/what.htm#NDFB

2. http://laws.findlaw.com/us/000/99-1178.html

The year/decade/century is starting off a bit rocky for many of the so called Dot.Com enterprises. Also, business on the Internet is looking downright gloomy for the liberal national media groups that thought they could move in and prosper.

For instance, many well known major newspapers have already laid off quite a few of their Internet people and other newspapers are considering it. The far left is learning that Americans have a great many choices here. And, when we have choice, we reject their liberal claptrap.

CNN is laying off a few hundred people. So are the other liberal television networks with a presence on the Internet. Again, America is tired of their constant support for socialism and their expressed contempt for the ideals that made our country so great.

Now we learn that the newly formed media giant AOL/Time Warner's reorganization is disrupting over 2,400 lives through lay offs. But that so called "giant" corporation may soon be in for a big surprise by many little David's. The company, as a whole, is very far left and many people are starting to learn about AOL's censorship. Every week, we hear many complaints about AOL. So, unless there are some significant management changes there soon, they may be doing a little belt tightening, too.

Some of the businesses on the Internet that indicated problems include the online health site WebMD, which will eliminate 1,100 jobs and ExciteAtHome Corp, which will lay off 250 employees.

The mighty Microsoft had a bit of a problem last week, too. Apparently, their web sites -- including Microsoft.com, Hotmail, the Microsoft Network, Expedia.com, and the MSNBC.com -- went out of service for about 24 hours. Server problems, they said. A hacker, probably.

Even Lucent Technologies, the world's largest telecommunications equipment maker, will cut 10,000 jobs.

Meanwhile, this little newsletter keeps chugging along. We picked up a few new subscribers last week who, collectively, will send the newsletter to a couple thousand new readers weekly.

There is a way to provide a much needed service on the Internet that can make a considerable amount of money. It would require an initial investment of about $150,000 and the wages for from six to eight dedicated people for about two years. Others have tried parts of it with success. However, single elements standing alone look almost ordinary today. Adding the elements into a seamless package available to everyone on the Internet would make it very attractive and useful.

Our mission for the new year was to climb out of this slow 28.8 dial-up connection. It finally became possible, even out here in the boondocks, when the local cable TV company changed to fiber optic cables and full digital television. So, we signed on with the Excite @home system.

Their advertising is correct. The system runs at least 100 times faster than a 28.8 dial up connection. Well, it does when it works, anyway.

The Excite @home system has provided quite the learning experience for me. They were to hook it up, but only did half the job and then gave me the wrong password. Luckily, they have a good help line and I can take instruction well. We were zooming along on the new system by Christmas weekend and have been playing with it since.

When it works.

The Internet side almost always works, and runs very fast. The e-mail side, however, frequently borders on useless. It can be very fast, but usually is not. And, quite often, it does not work at all.

In fact, it actually appears as though the @home technicians turn off the e-mail part of the system when they go home Friday evenings and it doesn't get turned back on until the late shift comes in Saturday night.

That's probably not true, of course. But it seems that way.

Another little problem is that the @home system eats some e-mail. I know this because I am signed onto the same two busy e-mail "lists" on both systems. It is not uncommon for mail to arrive on the @home system a full day later than it came on the 28.8 dial up system. Worse, some e-mail never arrives at all.

That's a problem!

That is also why we have not announced our new address, or even tried to send the newsletter out on this much faster system -- the e-mail has never yet been fast, or even dependable, on a Saturday evening.

Such is life on the Internet: Ever changing, always interesting, often frustrating.

This web page can NOT be altered or sold, but may be copied intact for reasonable distribution in keeping with the philosophy of uhuh and GR Force, who can assume no liabilities. Please make you own decisions.

The term U-Mail, uhuh and this web page are Copyright 1996 by Forest Glen Durland, subject to Fiedor's rights.

fron215.htm. Revised 1-27-01. uhuh and GR Force are non-profit.