MY VIEW ON POLITICS

I don't usually bring politics up, but I’m pretty pissed off so here it goes!

I was born in 1972 in St. Louis, Missouri. I come from the blue-collar middle class skilled laborers and I’m proud of that. Hard working people that taught me it was an honor to be born in America and that it was the best country in the world because we’re free to make ourselves into whatever we want. I’ve always felt pride to be an American, but looking back over the last 38 years, I worry about the direction of the government running this great country.

There’s a toast from a movie that goes: “Here's to the Army and Navy and the battles they have won. Here's to America's colors, the colors that never run. May the wings of liberty and freedom never lose a feather…”

Well, our government is destroying the memory of battles won, pouring bleach on our flag, and plucking feathers like it’s Thanksgiving dinner!

I wonder what our founding fathers would think of our government now?

The government they worked so hard to create.

The government that was designed to protect our rights and freedoms.

I think they’d be disgusted.

Disgusted that the government is now trying to take away the basic freedoms that so many men and women have lost their lives trying to protect over the years.

Will the next 38 years get worse, or will people wake up and see what's really going on? Will they fight to get back a government that’s for the people, by the people and here to protect their rights and freedoms instead of taking them away?

Some more thoughts…

Why is it I have to wear a helmet when I ride my motorcycle? Isn't it my motorcycle that I paid for? Isn't it my head and body that would suffer if I have an accident? Isn't it my freedom to decide if I want to wear a helmet? I do and probably would anyway, but shouldn't that be my decision?

Why do I have to wear a seat belt in my car that I paid for? Again, isn't it my body that would suffer? Isn't it my right to decide if I want to wear it or not?

Why is it that you can drink all the alcohol you want, but the government says you can't get high? I don't smoke cigarettes or anything else, but I don't see how getting high is any worse than alcohol. Is it because it’s bad for your health? Well, drinking in excess is terrible for your health. It can destroy your liver among other things. People also commit much worse crimes to others when drunk, than when they’re high. I can see where the hard drugs are illegal because of the harm and crimes they bring on other people. That still doesn't make sense that you can load up on alcohol and not pot…maybe it’s because of all the money that gets shoveled into the government from the sale of alcohol. Why shouldn't someone be able to legally get pot? I bet a large number of government officials do!

Why did the government make steroids illegal? Was it because they didn't think it was fair competition? Well, what right does the government have to judge sports anyway? Those are private leagues and shouldn't it be their decision how to handle it? Doesn't the government have better things to do then worry about professional sports? Maybe it’s because the government thinks it's bad for us? Well, it's proven that it's not that bad for you and in some instances it can help people live a better life. Isn't it my right to decide what I want to put in my own body? The government will let me eat all the fast food and dessert products I want everyday - which are bad for me - but I can't take steroids because they’re bad for me? I could also go to the store and buy aspirin, then take it until I have a huge ulcer, that's bad for me. Maybe they think it sets a bad example for kids, well what about Hollywood? They should be punishing and restricting actors for all kinds of things. Not to mention all the corruption in the government itself. If that's their reason, they are true hypocrites!

If the government doesn't want steroids because of the health reasons, then why are cortisone shots for athletes ok? With repeated use of cortisone shots, comes terrible side affects to the joint tissue. Why would it be ok to destroy an athlete’s joints, but he can't take steroids?

If the government is out to protect us from ourselves, then why is smoking legal? Smoking is well known to cause all kinds of health problems including cancer. On top of that, second hand smoke harms other people because they breathe in the smoke. It must be that the money the government makes off the sale of tobacco products is more important!

Isn't the right to bear arms one of our biggest and oldest rights as Americans? Why on earth would the government want to take away the right of an American citizen to protect himself? The only thing they’d do by banning guns is to hurt law-abiding citizens. Is the government too stupid to understand the simplicity of a firearm? Granted it takes skill to make a top-quality accurate dependable firearm, but they aren’t that complicated. Most people with a little bit of skill and knowledge could design something to fire a bullet. Haven't they heard about the zip guns guys used in the 50s? Not to mention all of the highly skilled machinists in the country that could easily design a firearm. The criminals would still get guns and know they wouldn't have to worry about the common citizen having one. Wow! Our government would be making it easier and safer for the criminals. How nice of them!

Now the government wants to make everyone be insured. Isn't it our right to be insured if we want to? One of the biggest problems with the high cost of insurance is the illegal aliens and people who’ve been on welfare for generations getting free health care. Maybe the government should fix those problems and the cost of health care would drop, so that a working class citizen could afford it. How is their plan going to help? Make people get insurance, if they can't afford it, the government helps fund them or gives them cheap insurance. Where do those funds come from? Well, would it be the taxpayers? So the middle class working man gets screwed either way, but now they’re trying to take my rights and freedoms too!

I could go on, but I think you get the point. Now, I’m not saying I’m some political analyst or genius, but I know I became one of the top powerlifters in the world against many odds by looking at things logically and using my brain. This is a pretty simple thing to me. All these little rights and freedoms may not seem like much, but look at the trends. Something is happening and it's not good. We have congressmen and senators passing bills that they didn't even read. They’re passing bills that don't apply to them, but apply to American citizens. That doesn't make sense; it’s supposed to be a government for the people by the people. So, why doesn’t this health care law apply to them? Why do they have their own special retirement, which is far better than anything the normal citizens have? Why can they vote themselves raises? Why can the majority of citizens who didn’t want this health care bill, but it passed anyway. People need to pay attention! Before we know it, the government will tell us what we can eat, when we need to workout, how we need to workout, what kind of cars we can drive, how much money we can make, how many kids we can have and so on. Every socialist and communist country started a little bit at a time, just like this!

THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE A GOVERNMENT FOR THE PEOPLE AND BY THE PEOPLE! IT WAS SET UP TO PROTECT OUR RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS! IN AMERICA EVERYONE IS BORN EQUALLY FREE AND IT UP TO US AS INDIVIDUALS TO DO WHAT WE WANT AFTER THAT!

WHAT IS HARDCORE

MONSTER TRUCK SHOW

My dad and I took my nephew to see the monster trucks last weekend. I don't really follow the monster truck series, but being a life-long power addict, it’s pretty awesome to see. There’s nothing like the sound of a blow v-8 motor with over 1700 horsepower. My dad said he wished he could have one in the backyard just to hear it! Another great comment he made was, “I never saw so many mullets in one place!” Monster trucks do attract a certain crowd, one that amuses the hell out of me! I’m truly amazed at how advanced those trucks are nowadays and equally amazed at the power they have. It’s kind of like Nascar…I can't really get into it all the time, but never pass up a chance to see it in person! I managed to get some ok pictures even though I didn't have the best seats or the correct lens- not to mention, the place was a dust bowl.

Click Here for Chad's Training Log