In Patrick Henry's immortal "Give Me Liberty Or Give Me Death" speech, he said, "[I]t is natural to man to indulge in the illusions of hope. We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth." Never have Henry's words been truer than they are today. For too long, good men have turned a blind eye to the obvious reality that America's Ship of State has swerved significantly off course. In fact, it is no hyperbole to say that America's Ship of State is completely rudderless and, absent a speedy course correction, seems destined to crash against the rocks of oppression and economic ruin in the very near future. For anyone willing to open their eyes, the manifestations of America's almost-certain collision with history are everywhere. America's Liberty Ship is dependent upon the twin mainsails of Morality and Constitutional Government to stay on course. It is an irrefutable and irreversible law that these twin sails are indissolubly linked. We cannot have one without the other. America's founders clearly understood this. - Chuck Baldwin

In the aftermath of the Massachusetts Senate vote last Tuesday, we now have a concrete fighting chance to block the reappointment of Wall Street puppet Ben Bernanke as the chairman of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors by preventing his Senate confirmation next week. This afternoon, Bernanke’s support was eroding hour by hour. - Webster G. Tarpley

In The Prince, Machiavelli (May 1469 - June 1527) wrote: "The mercenaries and auxiliaries are useless and dangerous, and if anyone supports his state by the arms of mercenaries, he will never stand firm or sure, as they are disunited, ambitious, without discipline, faithless, bold amongst friends, cowardly amongst enemies, they have no fear of God, and keep no faith with men." In an August 11, 2009 Global Research article titled, "The Real Grand Chessboard and the Profiteers of War," Peter Dale Scott called Private Military Contractors (PMCs) businesses "authorized to commit violence in the name of their employers....predatory bandits (transformed into) uncontrollable subordinates....representing....public power in....remote places."

In The Prince, Machiavelli (May 1469 - June 1527) wrote: "The mercenaries and auxiliaries are useless and dangerous, and if anyone supports his state by the arms of mercenaries, he will never stand firm or sure, as they are disunited, ambitious, without discipline, faithless, bold amongst friends, cowardly amongst enemies, they have no fear of God, and keep no faith with men." In an August 11, 2009 Global Research article titled, "The Real Grand Chessboard and the Profiteers of War," Peter Dale Scott called Private Military Contractors (PMCs) businesses "authorized to commit violence in the name of their employers....predatory bandits (transformed into) uncontrollable subordinates....representing....public power in....remote places."

LAS VEGAS -- In the nation's capital, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is on the brink of pushing through a national health program that Democrats rank alongside the creation of Social Security and Medicare. In Nevada, that very achievement is imperiling his re-election prospects. At a recent speech at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, in front of a largely friendly audience, Mr. Reid faced a series of hecklers. When he said only in the U.S. do people go bankrupt because of health costs, a man wearing a red "Dump Harry" shirt said loudly: "It's an outright lie."

Quietly—even stealthily—in the opening days of the New Year, President Barack Obama has set up a “Council of Governors”. Like the 30-plus czars running America with neither the people’s nor the congress’s blessings, the Council of Governors is already a done deal. “Is this a first step towards Martial Law, or a tie to the InterPol, RAND National Police Force stuff we’ve been hearing about,” asked a Texas patriot who tipped off Canada Free Press (CFP) after finding news of the new Council of Governors on Twitter. “Is this a sort of Homeland Security Politburo? “I do know it’s another sleuth order executed without any announcement, OR EXPLANATION to the People.” Patriots know by now that the promised Obama “transparency” is a fog. Checking the Net on the Council of Governors, CFP found other than a few blogs only UPI.com had the story as of this morning:

"Capitalism is the astounding belief that the most wickedest of men will do the most wickedest of things for the greatest good of everyone." John Maynard Keynes There's no denying that the economy is getting better, but will it last? Many economists don't think so, including experts at opposite ends of the ideological spectrum, like Paul Krugman and Martin Feldstein. They think the economy will begin to fizzle sometime in the latter part of 2010 when Obama's $787 billion fiscal stimulus runs out and consumers are forced to pick up the slack in demand. That's a safe bet, too, considering that unemployment will still be somewhere in the neighborhood of 9 percent and households will still be digging out from the $13 trillion they lost during the crisis. And the fact that the Fed is planning to end its quantitative easing (QE) program in early April, doesn't help either. That will just suck more liquidity out of the system and push long-term interest rates higher. When that happens, housing prices will fall, inventory will rise, and a surge in foreclosures will put more pressure on the banks balance sheets. That's why the pros are so glum, because they know the economy needs a second dose of stimulus to stay on track, but the politicos are dead-set against it. Congress is afraid of the backlash from voters in the upcoming midterm elections. They'd rather drive the economy back into recession then risk losing their jobs. - Mike Whitney

Are Americans willing to trade their freedoms for a false sense of security? This is the crucial question that must be answered before a successful struggle for liberty can be fought and won. If it is shown that the majority of Americans will readily trade their freedoms for a fake carnal security then the cause has already been lost. - Adam Murdock, M.D.

At 1 a.m. on December 21, 2009, in the dark of night, the first cloture vote was taken on H.R. 3590, Senator Harry Reid's Obama Deathcare Bill. The bill and all actions taken thus far can be found by clicking here and, in the search slot, entering "H.R. 3590", clicking on "Bill Number" then clicking "SEARCH". (This procedure will work for any bill you wish to look at.) How your Senator voted on cloture December 21, 2009, in the middle of the night, can be found here and also accessible under "All Congressional Actions with Amendments" when H.R. 3590 is put in the search slot on the main page of thomas.loc.gov. The vote was all Democrats (60) voting "yes" and all Republicans (40) voting "no". You will note that this bill, voted on by the Senate, is not a Senate bill; it is a House bill. How can it be that a House bill was used to introduce language written by the Senate? - Lynn Stuter

From the top of virtually every flag staff in our country flies the emblem of The United States of America. Our national flag is a moving symbol of what we believe the country has stood for since our victory against the British. It has flown as the rallying cry for men and women in combat. It has been seen by some as the single sacred goal for refugees in hostile lands who were literally crawling for the protection of its embassy or a U.S. Marine detachment protecting the soil on which it flies. And for still others, it has flown border to border and coast to coast as our “guardian angel” spreading its majestic colors for the world to see and know that America stood for something greater than self, a visual picture to all who see it from a distance, that the might and glory of her history was truly something to cherish and die for if necessary. - Greg Evensen