May 2020 – The McCullough Report

MEMORIAL DAY 2020

Want to be Buried in Arlington National Cemetery? It's Not Easy ... — ARLINGTON CEMETERY

On this day, May 25, 2020, we honor those who fought and died in order to protect our rights and our freedom. From the Revolutionary War through all the wars our country fought to date, brave men stood the line to ensure that we as a nation would keep our values, our Constitution intact. Many thousands have died for us, and we as a nation owe them a debt that can only be repaid by honoring and protecting the freedom they died for.

Because of Covid-19 shutdowns, there will be no honors bestowed on their graves, no parades, no celebrations today, except in the hearts of patriots everywhere. Those of us that know history, and value their sacrifice will say silent prayers today, thanking those that gave everything they had for our country. It’s a solemn day, and a sad day because of our current situation.

Our founding fathers had it right when they began this country. Here are some of their quotes to ponder:

“Liberty must at all hazards be supported. We have a right to it, derived from our Maker. But if we had not, our fathers have earned and bought it for us, at the expense of their ease, their estates, their pleasure, and their blood.”

John Adams, A Dissertation on the Canon and Feudal Law, 1765

“Is life so dear, or peaceful so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!”

Patrick Henry, Speech at the Virginia Convention

“There is not a single instance in history in which civil liberty was lost, and religious liberty preserved entire. If therefore we yield up our temporal property, we at the same time deliver the conscience into bondage.”

John Witherspoon, The Dominion of Providence Over the Passions of Men, 1776

“The establishment of Civil and Religious Liberty was the Motive which induced me to the Field – the object is attained – and it now remains to be my earnest wish and prayer, that the Citizens of the United States could make a wise and virtuous use of the blessings placed before them.”

George Washington to the Reformed German Congregation of New York City, November 27, 1783

“The people never give up their liberties but under some delusion.”

Edmund Burke, Speech at Country Meeting of Buckinghamshire, 1784

“God grant, that not only the Love of Liberty, but a thorough Knowledge of the Rights of Man, may pervade all the Nations of the Earth, so that a Philosopher may set his Foot anywhere on its Surface, and say, ‘This is my Country.’ ”

Benjamin Franklin, Letter to David Hartley, December 4, 1789

“Liberty and order will never be perfectly safe, until a trespass on the constitutional provisions for either, shall be felt with the same keenness that resents an invasion of the dearest rights, until every citizen shall be an Argus to espy, and an Aegeon to avenge, the unhallowed deed.”

James Madison, Speech to Congress, 1792

“Timid men…prefer the calm of despotism to the boisterous sea of liberty.”

Thomas Jefferson to Philip Mazzei, April 24, 1796

“We are not to expect to be translated from despotism to liberty in a featherbed.”

Thomas Jefferson, Letter to the Marquis de Lafayette, April 2, 1790

“The people…are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.”

Thomas Jefferson, Letter to James Madison, 1787

“Liberty may be endangered by the abuses of liberty as well as the abuses of power.”

James Madison, The Federalist Papers, 1788

“I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.”

Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Benjamin Rush, 1800

“Our contest is not only whether we ourselves shall be free, but whether there shall be left to mankind an asylum on earth for civil and religious liberty.”

Samuel Adams, Speech in Philadelphia, August 1, 1776

“The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.”

Thomas Jefferson

These men defined what it is to be an American. Their ideals are the reasons for the sacrifice our soldiers and sailors underwent. It also is the reason we have lived as free men for the last 244 years, and prospered because of the freedom we have that is lacking in most of the rest of the world. They gave us something precious that we have to protect at all costs, our Constitution. That leads us to the point for today. This pandemic has in effect crushed our Constitution, taken away freedom and liberty for all, and has brought to the forefront the tyranny of big government. As Americans, it is our duty to resist this infringement on our rights in every way possible. If we do not, these men, these hero’s have died in vain, and we will forever be lost!

OUR WORLD GOES INSANE!

Image result for Picture of protest in Sacramento

We are now living in a surreal place. “It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man’s fears and the summit of his knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area which we call the Twilight Zone.” It is a place where bureaucrats and politicians control us against our will, and say that they are just “following the science”, when in fact science has little to do with it. It is a place where we wear masks and gloves, to fight the “invisible enemy”, an enemy that mostly affects those of us who are elderly and sick. It is where healthy people are told to “shelter in place”, when they are in little if any danger, and those in charge send covid-19 patients into nursing homes, devastating those populations. Businesses are closed, people are facing economic devastation, while politicians debate on how much funny money to send into the economy, to fight global warming, promote abortions, and other Progressive wish lists, all the while leaving the bill for our progeny. These people are systematically destroying our social fabric, shredding our constitution, and willfully committing economic suicide, all in the notion that somehow this destruction will keep us “safe”.

I live in Los Angeles County, the hub of total ineptitude. The county is approximately 10 million in population, and has a GNP that exceeds that of Saudi Arabia. By most standards, this county is rich, and is able to afford a proper and reasoned response to this virus. Dr. Barbara Ferrer is the Director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. Problem is that she is not an MD, not even a DO, but instead has a doctorate in Social Work. She works closely with city and county politicians and bureaucrats to create a response to covid-19. Yes, a social worker is in charge of creating our response.

Los Angeles Mayor Garcetti is locking down that city at least until August. By then the economic damage will be irreversible, and as many as 50% of small business in that area will fail. Many more people will be left to fend for themselves and their families on the street, a problem that was of epic proportions even before the virus. The city is out of money now because of lack of tax revenue, but he marches on with this policy.

Other cities in the county are following suit. This is senseless because the county is as diverse as its population. Areas are primarily agricultural, where sheltering in place is about as stupid as killing a fly with an atom bomb! Other areas are suburban, where a lockdown is almost as stupid. Areas of the inner city where people live in close quarters it may make more sense, but even then, how does the county ever achieve “herd immunity”?

The state of California is also running on a crazy train of its own. Also broke because of lack of tax revenue, Governor Newsom has set aside $500,000,000 to give each and every illegal immigrant in our state a $500 tax free check. He is begging for the Federal Government to bail out his mismanaged state, as he gives free health care to illegals under the age of 25. He is also locking the state down as much as possible. All the while anger is growing, people are demonstrating, and some are even being arrested. This misfortunate policy carries on in spite of overwhelming evidence that it is just not working.

This is no longer a health issue. It is a political one. This failed state, and others in the same positions are looking at this virus as an opportunity for the Federal government, in other words all Americans to pick up the bill for their poor leadership and mismanagement. They are driving their states, counties and cities to the breaking point, and pointing to their dire straits for the reason they need stimulus from the Fed. This is not a solution, but they see it as that.

They are not following science, or economics. It could be that they are afraid to profess that they were wrong, and no Progressive would ever do that! They are in effect killing our rights, our economy, and our people in the name of keeping us safe. They order us to give up liberty for safety, but at the end of the day, we are neither safe or free!

They instead should open up their economies, and at the same time protect those that are most in danger, the elderly with comorbidities. If they do that, they have political futures. If they do not, and wreak this horror down on us, they will have no future in public life. Instead, they will carry the blame for the destruction that they needlessly brought down upon us.

“DON’T TREAD ON ME”, CALIFORNIA’S RESPONSE TO TYRANNY

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is image-2.png — McCullough photo

Thousands of protesters were on the ground in Huntington Beach on May 1, 2020. Thousands more were in their cars and trucks, waving placards and American flags, rolling slowly through Pacific Coast Highway, the major road abutting the beach. It wasn’t easy for any of them. State, County, and City police had cordoned off the downtown area, making it impossible to park. Those on the ground had to walk miles to get to the protest. Those rolling through put up with miles of protest traffic, moving slower than a walk because police blocked all but 1 lane in each direction to dissuade protest traffic. If anything, their methods just bolstered their resolve!

These people were protesting the closing of the beach, the lock-down of the economy, and the assault on their constitutional rights. They were a snapshot of California, all races, all ages, and surprisingly heavily weighted with Millennial’s. It appears that many people here took their freedom for granted, were now incensed that our Governor has taken it away. Even surfers, people that never even thought to vote, were protesting.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is image-9.png — McCullough photo

Many of the protesters were out of work. They had signs that stated “All work is essential, politicians are not”. These people are seeing all they worked for dissolving before their eyes, now knowing that this virus may be infectious, but not nearly as deadly as first reported. Their indignation was clearly palpable. They want the economy opened up to stop their personal destruction.

The police were amazing! We interviewed some of them, and they all said they were with us. Officers said they were there to make sure the protest did not get out of hand, and had no intention of citing anyone for violating the Governor’s dictates. Some of them off duty were on the ground protesting themselves.

Our Governor, as with many other Progressive politicians, have thought they could control us, make us comply. What is being done is an affront to our individual Constitutional rights, and at this point in time totally unnecessary for any purported health reasons. They think they can advance their agenda using this covid-19 crisis as their permission for unpopular and unconstitutional action. They believe that we will willingly give them the ultimate power that we all have, our liberty, for a shallow, empty promise of safety.

We are at our heart still a revolutionary society. Make no mistake, American people will not give up liberty, freedom and their constitutional rights without a fight. Instead, our yearning for freedom will steadily ignite even those who never involved themselves with the politics of governance. The burning desire to regain all that they lost will be their reason to act, their awakening. Defeat is not an option!

Patrick Henry said it best when he spoke to the 2nd Virginia convention on March 23rd, 1775!

“Our petitions have been slighted,” Henry said, “our remonstrances have produced additional violence and insult; our supplications have been disregarded; and we have been spurned, with contempt, from the foot of the throne…we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight! An appeal to arms and to the God of Hosts is all that is left us!”

Henry stood silent for a moment, letting his defiant words hang in the air. When he finally began speaking again, it was in a thunderous bellow that seemed to shake “the walls of the building and all within them.” His fellow delegates leaned forward in their seats as he reached his crescendo.

“The war is actually begun!” Henry cried. “The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery?” As he spoke, Henry held his wrists together as though they were manacled and raised them toward the heavens. “Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty”—Henry burst from his imaginary chains and grasped an ivory letter opener—“or give me death!” As he uttered these final words, he plunged the letter opener toward his chest, mimicking a knife blow to the heart. (History, August 22, 2018, Patrick Henry’s “Give me liberty, or give me death” speech).

WE WILL NOT COMPLY!