The reaction to the Supreme Court ruling yesterday that declared ObamaCare to be legal was swift and palpable. The most consistently accurate polls have shown that already more than half of Americans supported repeal of the law prior to the court's ruling. Expect that number to dramatically increase, now that it has become clear the law is nothing more than a massive new tax disguised as yet another entitlement provided "for free" by the federal government. Within minutes of the announcement, people on Facebook began to express renewed enthusiasm to vote this November. Within hours, the law had a new nickname: Obamatax. The conventional wisdom soon became that Chief Justice John Roberts had caved in to pressure from President Obama, and gave the Democrats a clear victory on his crowning achievement, the horribly misnamed Affordable Care Act. Indeed, the early analysis showed that the final decision came so late in the game that the dissent was worded as if written by the majority, and vice versa. The ultra liberal Daily Kos celebrated the ruling, opining that the decision "breaks the heart of every Republican and Federalist Society member." A liberal analyst at Slate crowed that "It is impossible for a lawyer to read even the first few pages of the dissent without coming away with the impression that this is a majority opinion that at the last moment lost its fifth vote. Its structure and tone are those of a winning coalition, not that of the losing side in the most controversial Supreme Court case in many years. But when we get to Page 13, far more … [Read more...]
God BLESS the U.S.A.
Rarely do I identify myself in allegiance with a political party. I order, I consider myself a Christian, an American, a conservative, and finally a native Southerner. Though I tend to vote Republican more often than not, I refuse to consider party affiliation as important as any of my preceding identifiers. I'll vote for a "good" Democrat in a heartbeat. Over the years, one of my favorite expressions to repeat during disagreements has been to say, "I may disagree with what you say, but I will defend to my death your right to say it." Never again will I utter those words. There are simply too many people out there who don't deserve such a sacrifice. I just listened to some rant and rave. In case you missed the initial story, a group of elementary school students recently were informed by their principal Great Hawkins that they could not sing Lee Greenwood's patriotic song "God Bless the U.S.A." they had rehearsed for months in their graduation ceremony--but they could sing Justin Bieber's teenybopper nonsense called "Baby." The New York Post article about the controversy quoted teachers repeating that Hawkins had specifically said, "We don't want to offend other cultures" as part of her excuse. Really? If someone is offended by American culture, why in the hell are they living in America and sending their kids to our public schools for a free education--okay, not free, but an education paid for by actual taxpayers. The school board backed the principal, deeming the lyrics of Greenwood's song were not "age appropriate." Really? Kids can't … [Read more...]
The importance of book reviews and a Kickstarter update
As an author, I realize that book reviews are critically important, as feedback for the writer as well as other prospective readers. Reading a book takes time, a precious commodity in this day and age. There are many authors with other books competing for the reader's attention. A positive review lets other readers know someone else enjoyed and recommends your book. As long as a negative review contains constructive criticism, they also provide valuable feedback to the writer, so they know what didn't work and where to improve. My first novel, Coastal Empire, received positive reviews...just not very many of them so far. My friends tend to call to tell me personally that they enjoyed my novel, rather than publishing a review for posterity. The former is appreciated, but the latter would be beneficial to me and other readers. Therefore, I entered Coastal Empire into a contest run by Reader's Favorite to gain exposure and get another published review of my book. Here's what reviewer Annie B. said in her five star review about my first novel: "Coastal Empire", written by John “Rocky” Leonard, has its setting in the beautiful Savannah, Georgia. Our story begins with a murder and a big bang. When Sarah Reid walked into private investigator Robert Mercer office, he admired her beauty. She hired him to investigate her husband, Barry, a real estate tycoon, suspecting him of cheating on her. Mercer thought “her husband must be an idiot.” Could Barry be an adulterous husband or was it a case of identity theft? The investigation turned dangerous as the murder victims began … [Read more...]
Official Kickstarter campaign for Secondhand Sight
If you liked reading my novel Coastal Empire,I think you might enjoy my new book, officially released on September 7th. Please consider supporting my Kickstarter campaign for Secondhand Sight. … [Read more...]
