BOGUE, Kan. - A Jan.11 writer to Reader Forum [Hays Daily News] blustered about "non-factual distortion" by the Obama administration and supporters, then made his own claims.

[CLAIM: "All the money from the richest 400 Americans wouldn't pay our bills for a week."] In 2011 the richest 400 were together worth $1.5 trillion. (Forbes Magazine) Current annual federal spending is estimated at $3.6 trillion; state at $1.43; local, $1.63 trillion. So, the 400's wealth would fund all federal spending for 5 months, state for one year, local for 11 months. All federal, state, and local spending for about 3 months.

Incidentally, the richest 400 gained 12 percent. from 2010 to 2011. Since 2006, their net worth increased by $250 billion, about 17 percent. On the other hand, "Over the past five years Americans, on average, have seen no disposable income growth if you adjust for population and inflation. This also explains why they're spending like it's 2006 -- because they don't have more money to spend. No wonder the recovery continues to feel like a recession: that's an awfully long time to go without a raise."

COLBY, Kan. - If readers go back and read Bob Hooper's A Message from the SEA Party, they'll find these snippets in Hooper's article: "Then with a wide grin, 'You think the millionaire ought to pay more taxes than the bus driver ... or less?' A thunderous 'MORE!' from the crowd... It's Obama and his class war .... W-w-w-wait. You're shaking your head. Not Oba..? Wha... Reagan? Reagan, a Marxist economic justice'er? Well, indeed. It was Ronald Reagan. He was speaking at Northside HIgh School in Atlanta on June 6, 1985, shortly after starting his second term."

And then a little snippet from an anonymous commenter named Jonathan in reply to Hooper's article, " ...take your anti-capitalism message and go home - before somebody gets killed."

I say, "Jonathan, did you forget that the 'great communicator' was a Republican capitalist? He apparently didn't hear or interpret the thunderous response of the crowd. Instead, he came up with his famous 'trickle down theory'. How did that work for you, or anyone else reading here in Kansas Free Press?"

BOGUE, Kan. - There's a lot of stuff goin' around these days. I know because quite a bit comes my way intended to set me straight.

One recent email forwarded from a persistent lady in eastern Rooks County (forwarded to her from a guy in that neck of the woods, endlessly forwarded to him by... etc.) provided a quote claimed to be from Norman Thomas. It went:

"The American people will never knowingly adopt socialism. But under the name of 'liberalism,' they will adopt every fragment of the socialist program, until one day America will be a socialist nation, without knowing how it happened."

If you're a 'righty-fighty' you probably got it, too, since fellow travelers are usually targeted. And you like it because, yeah, you know, there's black and there's white. There's 'us'ns and them'ns.' Us'ns is good and them'ns is evil. Socialism is them'ns and capitalism is us'ns. Us'ns is goodness incorporated. Socialism is ... Well, you can figure it out. Wait. No you can't.

BASEHOR, Kan. - The Wall Street Journal editorial in the August 6-7 edition, titled Repatriation Games, extolls the economic miracles that would abound if U.S. multi-national corporations were allowed to "repatriate" their foreign-earned capital to the United States at atrociously low tax rates. New York Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer, in spite of his everyman-champion image, is a shill for Wall Street and has proposed a one-year, 5.25% repatriation rate. Economist Allen Sinai, in the same editorial, is reported to have estimated that there is more than $1 trillion abroad waiting to be repatriated -- if only the rates go down.

Unfortunately, the editorial leaves out one inconvenient fact when it comes to the argument that repatriation of foreign capital will produce jobs: lack of customer demand.

BASEHOR, Kan. - The August 3 Wall Street Journal opinion piece Bill Clinton Does 'Jim Crow', seems to present a straw issue with little substance in the larger scheme of things.

I realize that some on the Left see any attempt by charlatans like Kris Kobach to impose voter identification as un-American, but is this really an issue that Progressives want to go to the mat on?

If I have to produce ID to set up a bank account, write a check at a retail store, get on an airplane, rent a car, stay in a hotel, or even obtain a library card, I can't for the life of me see why I shouldn't have to produce identification if I'm going to exercise my most fundamental right as a citizen. I understand the argument that, as a fundamental right of American citizenship, the right to vote should not be infringed.

SALINA, Kan. - The Fourth of July and its accompanying outburst of patriotism are fast approaching. Unfortunately, the word "patriotic" is quickly becoming bastardized in popular culture. We have tea partiers and Sarah Palin to thank.

Look back at coverage of tea party rallies this past spring. Inevitably you'll see a quote from a speaker or an attendee about how great it is to be with so many "patriotic" Americans. By implication, if you're not one of those who buy into the bogus notion that most of our country's debt and other problems were caused by Barack Obama, you're not considered patriotic. That, of course, is pure nonsense.

These self-described patriots are suspicious of Obama in part because he lived four of his grade school years in Indonesia. Having been corrupted by exposure to another culture he possibly doesn't share "our values." Indonesia is the world's fourth most populated nation and has the world's largest Muslim population. It can't hurt to know a little about it.

BASEHOR, Kan. - The poor Republicans. They've been in such a hurry to run to the microphone to denounce anything that runs afoul of their cherished "no taxes, no regulation" ideology that they've neglected to notice that they're increasingly becoming irrelevant as a party of ideas. In a sign that those cracks are growing ever larger, Senator Tom Coburn, (R) Oklahoma, submitted a bill for consideration that would eliminate tax subsidies for the ethanol boondoggle, something that Grover Norquist, head of Americans for Tax Reform, said amounted to a tax increase.

Fareed Zakaria, in his recent Time Magazine opinion piece, wrote about conservatives' outmoded ideology, saying,

Consider the debates over the economy. The Republican prescription is to cut taxes and slash government spending -- then things will bounce back. Now, I would like to see lower rates in the context of tax simplification and reform, but what is the evidence that tax cuts are the best path to revive the U.S. economy? Taxes -- federal and state combined -- as a percentage of GDP are at their lowest level since 1950. The U.S. is among the lowest taxed of the big industrial economies. So the case that America is grinding to a halt because of high taxation is not based on facts but is simply a theoretical assertion. The rich countries that are in the best shape right now, with strong growth and low unemployment, are ones like Germany and Denmark, neither one characterized by low taxes.

SALINA, Kan. - Recently, in between the outing of "First Farce," Donald Trump and the successful mission that killed Osama bin Laden was a little-commented upon announcement regarding the shake-up of President Obama's national security team. The changes are being set in motion by the upcoming retirement of Defense Secretary Robert Gates. When the widely-respected Gates steps this down this summer the nation will lose one of its exemplary public servants.

Bob Gates is that rare breed in Washington - someone who has reached a level of respect that transcends partisan politics, an individual held in high esteem for many reasons, primarily his reputation for professional competence. And although some will regard his career as a bit tainted due to questions about how much he knew about the Iran-Contra affair, his tenure as Defense Secretary has been widely admired.

A native of Wichita, Kansas, Gates came to government service via an academic career that culminated in his receipt of a PhD from Georgetown in Russian and Soviet history.

WICHITA, Kan. - The Pakistan army ordered a cut in U.S. military personnel within its borders on Thursday. This move by the Pakistani government seemed to be in reaction to the unilateral American commando raid that killed Osama bin Laden.

Fine! Let's get all 257 of our United States troops out of Pakistan.

Then, let's take away the 2 billion in annual taxpayer funded foreign aid (or maybe only 1.7 billion, who's keeping track). According to Reuters, Pakistan is paying $900,000 to a Washington public relations firm to push Pakistan's defense of the bin Laden story - that none of their army, their police, their much vaunted ISI intelligence service had any idea that the huge installed-in-2005 luxurious facility nested in the suburb of Islamabad was hiding the most wanted man in the world. Even though Bin Laden's hideout was just 'down the street' from Pakistan's West Point.

Now, Pakistan's titular president has run off to France leaving the military in charge of the country.

WICHITA, Kan. - A friend of mine sent the following comment regarding the death of Osama bin Laden: "Can we now say 'mission accomplished?' He was killed in a walled compound near a Pakistan military base, and not in Afghanistan. It's time to end the expense, bring the kids home, and begin a peace time economy again."

I told my friend that I agree wholeheartedly that we should withdraw from Afghanistan.

However, I had to qualify my enthusiasm with an observation. Just as Eisenhower warned us against allowing the 'military industrial complex' to take over our government, the sad truth is - that's exactly what has taken place. The military industrial complex has, indeed, taken over our democratic processes on behalf of the oil / energy conglomerates, Wall Street and the banks. Sadly, I think it would be delusional to assume that those who really determine our foreign policies would ever give an inch in regard to their steady march toward world hegemony.

We must remember that candidate Obama's promise to "leave Iraq" turned out to be a decision that was "above the President's pay-grade."