Archive for the ‘General’ Category
August 12, 2022 | General
I am a city boy, born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. A much different place than what it is today. As a teenager I could hop on a bus or city subway to parts unknown. Life was much simpler at a time when civility was commonplace.
Cities are bustling, complex places of diverse structures, ethnicities, and political bent, although when, in my younger days, differences were minor and the clash from one side of the spectrum to the other were small. For the most part, we lived in relative harmony. Mother, father, son, and daughter were the makeup of society predicated on peace, prosperity, and a family unit. Things have changed over the years, but I am not of the mindset that they change for the better although there was a time when the future looked much brighter. Today, from what I have learned and can see before me, the outcome looks bleak.
I now view the world from a different place, surrounded by fields of corn, mountains, and twisted roads bringing me from one point of origin to a final destination of need. I am given to relaxing under the overhang from the second floor of my home while viewing the landscape of trees, and mountains that are now part of my life. A far different view of the stark and energetic hustle and bustle of the Big City, where, as a young man I could stay out till all hours of the morning. Life changes, sometimes for the better, other times for the worse.
I was unsure as to where I was in life until this last evening. As I watched the clouds roll in, and the thunder roar, I decided to check my e-mail from my phone. I received an email from a reader of my articles. Over the years I have received complements, and controversy about that which I have written. This evening I, in my mind, was given a confirmation of why I am here. It may be circumspect, and only a means of self-validating the hours I have spent searching for truth, the point I have missed, or the subject I have misinterpreted.
The e-mail read as follows:
Hope you are well -- wanted to share some words by Abraham Lincoln in "The Civil War"" Volume 1, p.32 by Shelby Foote. Lincoln was speaking about slavery -- the opposing sides -- one for and the other against. But, I was struck by Lincoln's logic -- his logic addresses many modern issues I have read in RestoreTheRepublic.org. I hope this quote will provide some inspiration for you -- it did for me ("Let us dare to do our duty")
p.32
Presently, however, the awkwardness was dropped ...... He (Lincoln) spoke with calm authority ..... Slavery was the issue, North and South, he said, probing once more for the heart of the matter.
"All they ask, we could readily grant, if we thought slavery right; all we ask, they could as readily grant, if they thought it wrong. Their thinking it right, and our thinking it wrong, is the fact upon which depends the whole controversy. Thinking it right, as they do, they are not to blame for desiring its full recognition as being right; but, thinking it wrong, as we do, can we yield to them? Can we cast our votes with their view and against our own? In view of our moral, social, and political responsibilities, can we do this?" He thought not. "If our sense of duty forbids this, then let us stand by our duty fearlessly and effectively ..... Neither let us be slandered from our duty by false accusations against us, nor frightened from it by menaces of destruction to the government nor of dungeons to ourselves. Let us have faith that right makes might, and in that faith let us, to the end, dare to do our duty as we understand it."
After reading the e-mail I stepped out from under the overhang to take in the sky as if it were a messenger from the Heavens as it struck thunder around me, and the sky grew darker, although not foreboding. As I gazed upward at the rolling clouds, a bright and beautiful rainbow appeared, where I could not miss its resounding claim of peace and tranquility.
While I am often given to wonder, amusement, and thought by my own sometimes fanciful musings, I could not help myself to think that this was indeed a sign. Some believe in an Almighty Deity as the Creator of Heaven and Earth; others believe in pure happenstance. A notion that we are here by a fluke of nature, the coming together of some forces that were there before but have no explanation for their creation over the course of Trillions of Millenia except that they existed. The whole idea seems implausible, but it is none-the-less the explanation of scientists who will go with the notion that there is no proof that God exists.
Be that as it may, I am not one who has been deprived of warnings, spiritual in nature, or to quote Obi Wan Kenobi, “Use the Force.” To me, there is a connection to the Universe that we often ignore. Could it be a “déjà vu” as a glitch in the Matrix? I firmly believe that I have been given enough signs over the years to be a believer in a fact of this Universe. We are given a task before we come here.
That task may be a never ending journey from one life to the next. It may be a call to alert others of the dangers before us. For some it might be the heroism of the battle field. To that I note that the last of those Medal of Honor recipients from WWII died July of this year. I hope that they will be remembered for a task, a lesson, a journey that is beyond the scope of the words I pen from time to time.
Our journey through life may be as simple as ...
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July 14, 2022 | General
by Nicholas Testaccio
When Matthew McConaughey stood at the podium to make his “impassioned speech” for gun control, reality came crashing down around me as if Winston Smith rose from the depths of “1984” to warn that the end is here.
From “Remember the Maine” to Pearl Harbor, to the Gulf of Tonkin, to “Fast and Furious,” to Las Vegas, Sandy Hook, to Parkland, to Buffalo, and now to Uvalde, I could see it all. I could recall my father’s words, from when I was just a boy, that this country was doomed. There were already too many in the halls of the legislatures and the school system who were plotting to destroy what was once a free nation composed of a sovereign People’s.
Let’s dispense with the ignorant remarks of not believing in conspiracies because they abound. The Captain of the Maine told us that it was a bunker fire, the third one that sunk the Maine, not the Spanish, but his report was ignored by those clamoring for war with Spain.
The Captains of the U.S. Navy at Pearl Harbor all knew that the Japanese were going to attack, and they were given orders to fire on sight, but those orders were constantly being rescinded by Washington.
Years later it came out that the Gulf of Tonkin incident did not take place. It was a story made up by Washington to bring us into the war, but again, most do not have that knowledge.
“Fast and Furious” was a plot by the Obama administration designed to infringe on the Second Amendment by selling guns to Mexican drug cartels. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was murdered as a result of that conspiracy. Eric Holder lied, bold face, before congress and was never charged. However, Peter Navarro and Steve Bannon are both being charged with felonies for refusing to testify before congress.
According to the Secret Service, Eighty-One Percent of the shooters, whose intent was to perpetrate a mass shooting, was known to someone as planning the horror. We now know that the Uvalde shooter was on Discord and communicating with an undercover FBI agent. Every one of these incidents stink, and if we were allowed to investigate, and comb through the evidence, I can guarantee that we will find a government fingerprint somewhere in the rubble and carnage.
However, “We the People” are not allowed to investigate. Instead, we are fed whatever the media portrays as fact coming from “public officials” who cannot stop the lies and deceit from vomiting out of their mouths. President John F. Kennedy was assassinated almost Sixty years ago, and we still don’t know the truth of the matter, except for the fact that a nation buried one of its finer presidents. A man, while he had his own personal issues, was working to remove the stink of those who were destroying this nation.
I want to know exactly what took place at Sandy Hook? I want to know why we are not allowed to see all the details when it is being used as a tool to infringe on a right inestimable to the security of a nation hangs in the balance? I want to know why the parents of those poor children are given sway over an entire nation, when the path they have taken is in every-way-shape-or-form “A Case Of Treason”. Yes, that’s right. In this nation, although it has fallen on deaf ears, the original Constitution makes the bearing of arms a Duty. And if we were to adhere to those constitutional commands as the Framers installed them, I can guarantee that these mass shootings would never have occurred.
The Founders of this nation have been, as Thomas Sowell has documented, demonized and their attempts to make that, which “A Declaration” so eloquently states, a reality; “We hold these truths to be self-evident – That all men are created equal – That they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights – That among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness…” However, their efforts have been parsed to the waste bin of history by those in government, educators, and media in order to tear apart the soul of liberty.
We all have our faults. Some of us understand our shortcomings and work to improve ourselves. Others, such as those we elect to represent us, take our faults, and use them to undermine and destroy the things that we must hold sacred.
Some are so ignorant of what swirls all around them that they are easily swayed to be a tool of men such as Klaus Schwab, or Joe Biden, a consummate liar. The Clinton’s, the Obama’s, and a host of other’s growing out of the World Economic Forum who tell us what they have planned.
The forked tongue viper sways many a fool into becoming an instrument, by which atrocities can be committed. The Armenians, the Jews, the Ukrainians, the Chinese, the Cambodians, the stench of genocide permeated the air of the Twentieth Century, all documented in a study titled “Democide: Murder By Government”. Two-Hundred-Sixty Million plus murdered at the hands of government in the last century, and here we are in the Twenty-First Century with groups such as Moms Demand Action, and Everytown asking us to hand over to that same entity the tools the Founder’s bequeath to us to stave off the hands of government agents acting with false authority. In the words of Alexander Hamilton, “that men acting by virtue of powers, may do not only what their powers do not authorize, but what they forbid.”
What I hear from the likes of these people is I have suffered, now its your turn. I will do whatever I can to bring you the same pain I have felt. While we must sympathize with those who have been through such a life shattering experience, the empathy must be held at bay once their revenge is brought forth upon those of us who had nothing at all to do with their tragedy. Their actions are a direct attack on the ...
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by Nicholas Testaccio
There are times when I become maudlin over the affairs of the Nation and the World. At those points in my life, I feel the need to lash out with a rant. I see, what to me is an obvious lack of spirit, desire, the absolute soul crunching failure to protect that, which is most precious to the human spirit. I want to run through the streets yelling at the top of my lungs – DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND THE CONSEQUENCES OF YOUR AMBIVALENCE AND IGNORANCE?
I am very fortunate in that my grandparents saw fit to take that journey from Italy to a country over Three-Thousand miles away. I did not know my paternal grandfather as he passed away when my father was still a boy. He came with a skill and used it to set-up his business as a barber. I wish that I could have spent time with him as I did with my maternal grandfather Vincent. Unfortunately, I was just Ten years old when Grandpa Vincent passed away. In the short period of time I had to spend with him I learned about tools. I learned about the soil as he had quite a large garden in the middle of Brooklyn, New York. There was an apricot tree some thirty feet high that produced hundreds of its sweet fruit. Three peach trees from which we would snack. Strawberry’s, blackberry’s, figs, and nuts that often made breakfast a delight when I’d spend the summer days with my grandparents.
Grandpa was a veteran of WWI. He came to America, walked from the ship to the local recruiting station, and joined the army. Several years later he would warn the young men in the family that “War is a terrible thing.”. As far as I know all the men in my family served in WWII if they were able. I had the privilege of hearing about some of the events that took place at Pearl Harbor on that dark day from one of those men. He laughed as he noted “We didn’t know what was going on.”.
History is replete with stories from the men and women who survived the turmoil and the vicissitudes of turbulent, dark, and dangerous times. For some of those who survived it was a scar that would not heal. For others, the realization that they made it through made them stronger. They could laugh at the past, taking note of the actions they took, and be thankful for another day.
In Henry V, William Shakespeare wrote what would become a battle cry throughout the ages as commanders often took the time to read Henry’s speech. Generals read the words to rouse the spirits of their own men, some of whom would lay down their lives. As I think ahead to what might befall this nation, in the midst of strife, I would like to call together those who see that our country is under siege. We are facing an enemy unlike that, which Henry and his tired, hungry troops faced.
On October 25, 1415, Henry’s depleted force of some Five Thousand Men, were blocked from their return to England by an army of Twenty Thousand French. At Agincourt, Henry used everything he had in front of him to his advantage. The English Men-At-Arms slaughtered about one-third of the French army, while Henry suffered the loss of but a few hundred. Against tremendous odds King Henry V was able to defeat the French in what is marked as one of the great military victories throughout history.
In Shakespeare’s soliloquy of what Henry V might have spoken to his men, he calls forth that spirit that stirs all to victory. The battle was in front of a tired group of soldiers, stressed by the campaign they had fought. This battle was for all that was left within them, and the pages of history that would place the appropriate label upon their victory or loss.
“That he which hath no stomach to this fight,Let him depart. His passport shall be made,And crowns for convoy put into his purse.We would not die in that man’s companyThat fears his fellowship to die with us.”
As you scroll through the pages of history, you may have a glimpse of what was, but more importantly, what may come. Patrick Henry tells us “I have but one lamp by which my feet are guided, and that is the lamp of experience. I know of no way of judging of the future but by the past.”. Yet, we are allowing our history to be destroyed by factions that I am convinced are part of a plan influenced by communist agitators and their promotors.
Henry went on to shout “Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace-- but there is no peace. The war is actually begun!”. And now we come to the point of my rant, as I see a downfall aided by those who have no inkling of their complicity in our demise.
Let me repeat. “As a citizen, I know the government *** to be republican; and my short definition of such a government is one constructed on this principle -- that the supreme power resides in the body of the people.”.– Chisholm v Georgia 2 U.S. 419, 457. If this be the case of a nation “of, by, and for the people”, then a method of retaining that sovereignty over a servant government should be enumerated in our founding documents. And if that means be so stated, then it must be employed for the purposes of which it was made law.
A Declaration made on July 4th, 1776 explains the principles of this nation where that foundation created government “deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it”.
Fifteen years later The United States Constitution was ratified as the “Supreme Law of the Land”, defining the delegated authorities, and restrictions for the operation of such a country, wherein the People ...
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by Nicholas Testaccio
On August 27th of 2020, the online site Revolver wrote the following; “In a surprising turn of events, the New York Times has done some actual, real investigative reporting and confirmed Revolver’s conclusion that the Kyle Rittenhouse shooting is an open-and-shut case of self-defense. Shockingly, the evidence turned up by the New York Times actually strengthens the case for self-defense.”
Despite the protests, the propaganda, deceit, and the outright lies, a jury of his peers agreed that Kyle Rittenhouse acted in self-defense. I am sure that there were many thoughts as to the ramifications of a not guilty verdict that played heavy on the minds of the jurors, but they delivered a verdict that should never have been in question. Instead, the propagandist in the media and government doubled-down on their lust for more blood and suffering. The congressman from New York, Jerald Nadler, has called for the DOJ to investigate the matter.
This is what our future will look like, a nation torn apart by those whose goal is to bring America to its knees. We have already seen the DOJ unleashed on parents concerned about the quality of education their children are receiving. In fact, Attorney General Merrick Garland has lied before congress on this matter, but the AG is part of the internal threat to American’s so he will not suffer any consequences. Hopefully, I am wrong with that assessment.
As I go about the business of learning what others think of such matters, I am constrained to conclude that because of the factors of ambivalence, ignorance of our law, and naivety we may fall to a civil war, or devolve into a tyrannical state. I have heard enough people, who perceive themselves as intelligent, make the outlandish statement that they do not believe in conspiracies. You need only read the words of our Founders and examine the Constitution to recognize that conspiracy is the norm, but not the aberration. The Constitution is clear, it is an instruction manual for limited delegated authority, with the power of the Sword placed firmly in the hands of the people. There are no hidden meanings as professed by self-proclaimed scholars, nor is it open to interpretations made by black robed administrators, and their lackeys, commonly known as lawyers.
As I have attempted to convey, on so many occasions, this is a nation of sovereigns. “We the People” set down the Law, and “We the People,” in order to preserve our sovereignty established that it is our Right and our Duty to protect and defend our freedom, and especially our lives above the protestations of the oligarch and ignorant alike. The rule is “innocent until proven guilty” and “It is better that ten guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer..”
Bear in mind that in the Rittenhouse case, without any evidence that the young man was a racist or bigot he was labeled as such, and after the fact that he did not shoot anyone of African descent, the media is still playing the race card. More so disturbing is that there is still a large number of people who believe that young Rittenhouse killed Black men in his defense of himself, and therefore a murderer regardless of the facts.
Consider the fact that our government, I say “our” with a smirk because it no longer acts as our servant, has, for decades worked to disarm the public, and destroy the right of self-defense against this most pernicious enemy; the institution itself.
“We inquire, therefore, what, at the time the Constitution was framed and adopted, [was] recognized” as self-defense? The Constitution is not a difficult document to read, as are the unconstitutional, verbose, and often ambiguous acts of contemporary legislators. It came with a set of detailed instructions from the delegates and observers of the constitutional convention. The history of political and legal doctrine was no secret to the Framers, and they were religious in their reliance on the brilliant minds of politics and law that had gone before them, and fortunately, lived at that moment.
John Locke is referred to as the Father of Liberalism, a political and moral philosophy that underlines our form of government; “Consent of the governed.” His writings and principles helped guide our Founders to establish a government of, by, and for the people. It is no easy task to maintain that mindset when we have a legal system that has bastardized the law and usurped the authority of the people in order to centralize it to the ever growing threat that is government. Let us reflect on Locke’s explanation as it plays an important role with regard to the Kenosha affair and the push to disarm the American people.
John Locke described self-defense in this manner; "The defence of one's self, or the mutual and reciprocal defence of such as stand in the relations of husband and wife, parent and child, master and servant. In these cases, if the party himself, or any of these his relations, be forcibly attacked in his person or property.” Let’s pause here a moment. If you recall, during the Rittenhouse trial the prosecutor asserted that there is no right to protect property. In general, that is, of course, contrary to the instinct of man, and a violation of a natural right.
Locke goes on in his description to say, “it is lawful for him to repel force by force; and the breach of the peace, is chargeable upon him of the human mind; and (when external violence is offered to a man himself, or those to whom he bears a near connection) makes only who began the affray. For the law, in this case, respects the passions it lawful in him to do himself that immediate justice, to which he is prompted by nature, and which no prudential motives are strong enough to restrain. It considers that the future process of law is by no means an adequate remedy for injuries accompanied with force; since it is impossible to say, to what wanton lengths of rapine or cruelty outrages of ...
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September 12, 2021 | General
by Nicholas Testaccio
Lamont Cranston made his way into entertainment history back in the 1930’s. Cranston a dark and shadowy character known as “The Shadow” fought against evil. The show began with the question “Who knows what evils lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows!”. The show ended each episode with "The weed of crime bears bitter fruit! Crime does not pay...The Shadow knows!".
Ah, to have such a dark individual around today seeking out the evil doers and putting an end to their nefarious escapades would be a blessing. Unfortunately, the task would be too great for a single “Shadow”. The job would require a task force of many. Indeed, the city of Washington D.C. would require its own “Shadow” as would each state capitol. Another would have to right the immense evil cast out by the media.
I spend a good deal of my time reading articles, listening to news segments, and viewing “YouTubers” making their way through the piles of information disseminated each day. A good deal of what I read and hear is nonsense based on deliberate lies, obvious collusion aimed at promoting misinformation, and an incredible misunderstanding of our rule of law. It is mind-boggling.
There is an evil that is flourishing in the World. To me it seems senseless, illogical, and in all accounts averse to the betterment of man. Indeed, whatever sinister entity, persons, or organizations that are behind what I see unfolding is far darker than the human mind can imagine.
Last year, cities around our nation were looted and burned while politicians and media promoted acts of violence. Rioters, thieves, and even murderers were given a pass. But, when it came to those who defended themselves and their property, those poor victims were made to be examples in a system that has all the earmarks of a 1930’s mental institution.
The courts and the legal profession have not helped in any manner. I read opinions from judges presiding over cases brought by attorneys who should be peddling on the streets instead of writing complaints that only promote bad case law. I am not sure what they are teaching law students, but I am certain that it has nothing to do with our Constitution and law.
Law is either law, or it is a worthless endeavor to promote confusion, and ultimately the demise of the nation. We cannot count on attorney’s who are going into court and presenting feelings, or statistics instead of actual, factual, constitutional laws. When it comes to our unalienable rights and our unique form of government, there is no room for statistical data, governmental interests, or supposed duties that the State has unlawfully seized from the people. All that nonsense conflicts with our rights as the State can always make the argument that it has some interest in keeping the people safe. The concept of a governmental entity ensuring safety is ridiculous on its face. We need only look at the long record of infringement, and the conduct of political hacks persecuting those who do not align with a certain mindset. Take a look at the Kyle Rittenhouse case. Even the New York Times wrote that it was an obvious case of self-defense. Yet, young Mr. Rittenhouse is facing the possibility of life in prison.
In the last several years I have witnessed, what to me, is an obvious attempt to overturn any sense of right and wrong for the purpose of destroying this country. There are those who will stop at nothing to convert this to a communist regime wherein the few have ultimate control over the vast majority. Open borders that allow thousands of illegals in to add to voter rolls. What I see as obvious fraud in our elections. When I say obvious, I am talking about state officials that violated the Constitution. Mark Levin pointed to four states that committed an evident fraud.
Sadly, there will always be those who adhere to such treachery by enforcing the dictates of despots against an unarmed and impotent populace. It has happened too many times throughout history to be denied. It happened in our courts, and it continues to take place unabated.
The nation was thrown into turmoil over the death of a felon who imbibed a lethal dosage of fentanyl. George Floyd was a despicable human being. His death caused more turmoil than I have seen in decades. There was no rhyme or reason to it, other than a means by which the country could be brought to the verge of total chaos.
Common sense went out the windows shattered by looters. During this, a jury convicted a police officer of murder because they were admittedly fearful that if they didn’t the rioters would show up to seek vengeance. It is another step towards a totalitarian state wherein we have “public officials” playing on the fears of the individual.
The individual can do little to nothing to save him or herself from a mob of crazed people who are given free rein to promote fear, and the destruction of sanity. When the mob comes for you, there might be the police, but ultimately, because of our ignorance of law, only ourselves to fight off the hordes of criminals who know that they will more than likely be exonerated for creating mayhem.
Amid the turmoil and violence, there were many calling for dismantling of police departments. In the same breath, those seeking a disarmed populous will make the arguments that the police are there to protect you. Now, speaking out of the other side of their mouth, they want to defund the police labeling the agencies as “systemically racist”.
The individual is on his own trying to defend himself, his family, and property. It should be obvious, even to the most unobservant, that law enforcement cannot be everywhere all the time. I am certain that when the Constitution was written, this simple observance of reality was in the minds of those who framed the law. More importantly, those who debated the attributes of the document had to be given ...
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