By Billy”Kneecap”Braddock

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In the month after we have paid our taxes, it’s time to reflect on how it is being spent. The $14+trillion national debt is inconceivable. Spending increased by 27% in two years, but we are being told that it is impossible to cut the budget by 2%. I am dumbfounded. We need to take back the power from the Federal Bureaucrats, and return it to the States like the 10th Amendment of the Constitution demands. There are so many useless agencies that are trying to justify their existence by passing useless regulations.

Let’s look at the Dept. of Energy. In 1977 it was signed into law to rid the USA from its dependence on foreign oil. It has 16,000 employees and a $25 billion budget but not much success in 34 years. Now, we don’t drill in our own country, even with gas prices skyrocketing, but we give Brazil $2 Billion for oil exploration and tell them we will be happy to be their best customer.

Instead of moving to the future by taking care of the present, we are moving back to the past. We are definitely regressing. We tried electric cars in the 19th century and they went by the wayside with the invention of the internal combustion engine. We built windmills in the 7th century until steam power was developed and we didn’t need to rely on the fickle wind. Where is Don Quixote when you need him? As for solar power you better start praying to the Sun God RA if you think it will solve our energy problem.

Jack Kemp once said “If the government ever got in the dairy business, we would have a milk shortage”. Now, the Environmental Protection Agency, who told us that cow farts were destroying the ozone layer, has again gotten into the milk business. I guess the EPA never heard of the saying “Don’t cry over spilled milk”. The EPA has decided that since milk contains oil, it has the authority to force farmers to comply with new regulations and file “emergency management” plans to show how they will cope with spilled milk, how farmers will train “first responders”and build “containment facilities” if there is a flood of spilled milk. The horrible image of a flood of milk wiping out the countryside can’t compare with the BP oil spill. Thomas Jefferson said” My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much government”.

This May has good and bad days. It has the first Friday the 13th of the year, which coincides with the politicians celebrating “Blame Someone Else Day”. On the 21th there is “Armed Forces Day”, which was created in 1949 to honor the U.S. Military. On the 30th we observe “Memorial Day” commemorating U.S. Soldiers who died while in military service.

May is also “Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month”. A little reminder: three quarters of motorcycle accidents involve other motor vehicles, usually caused by negligent drivers. How many times have you heard “I never saw him”? Crashes often occur at intersections and a high number occur when the cage is turning LEFT. Prepare your bike, body, and brain. (I ride like I’m an avatar in a video game and everyone is trying to kill me.) Before starting your ride check the tire pressure, clutch and brake levers, fluid levels, and test the lights and horn. Stay alert.

Not every crash can be avoided. Practice emergency breaking. Remember riding with a passenger is different than riding alone. Stay safe, I need all the readers I can get.

For a great experience come to ThunderRoadsFlorida.com often.

See you on the shiny side of tomorrow…